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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 55 records · Page 3

Galactic oscillator symmetry

Riemann ellipsoids model rotating galaxies when the galactic velocity field is a linear function of the Cartesian coordinates of the galactic masses. In nuclear physics, the kinetic energy in the linear velocity field approximation is known as the collective kinetic energy. But, the linear approximation neglects intrinsic degrees of freedom associated with nonlinear velocity fields. To remove this limitation, the theory of symplectic dynamical symmetry is developed for classical systems. A classical phase space for a self-gravitating symplectic system is a co-adjoint orbit of the noncompact group SP(3,R). The degenerate co-adjoint orbit is the 12 dimensional homogeneous space Sp(3,R)/U(3), where the maximal compact subgroup U(3) is the symmetry group of the harmonic oscillator. The Hamiltonian equations of motion on each orbit form a Lax system X = (X,F), where X and F are elements of the symplectic Lie algebra. The elements of the matrix X are the generators of the symplectic Lie algebra, viz., the one-body collective quadratic functions of the positions and momenta of the galactic masses. The matrix F is composed from the self-gravitating potential energy, the angular velocity, and the hydostatic pressure. Solutions to the hamiltonian dynamical system on Sp(3,R)/U(3) are given by symplectic isospectral deformations. The Casimirs of Sp(3,R), equal to the traces of powers of X, are conserved quantities.

Rosensteel, George↗

Advanced fuel fusion, phase space engineering, and structure-preserving geometric algorithms

Non-thermal advanced fuel fusion trades the requirement of a large amount of recirculating tritium in the system for that of large recirculating power. Phase space engineering technologies utilizing externally injected electromagnetic fields can be applied to meet the challenge of maintaining non-thermal particle distributions at a reasonable cost. The physical processes of the phase space engineering are studied from a theoretical and algorithmic perspective. It is emphasized that the operational space of phase space engineering is limited by the underpinning symplectic dynamics of charged particles. The phase space incompressibility according to the Liouville theorem is just one of many constraints, and Gromov's non-squeezing theorem determines the minimum footprint of the charged particles on every conjugate phase space plane. In this sense and level of sophistication, the mathematical abstraction of phase space engineering is symplectic topology. To simulate the processes of phase space engineering, such as the Maxwell demon and electromagnetic energy extraction, and to accurately calculate the minimum footprints of charged particles, recently developed structure-preserving geometric algorithms can be used. The family of algorithms conserves exactly, on discretized spacetime, symplecticity and thus incompressibility, non-squeezability, and symplectic capacities. The algorithms apply to the dynamics of charged particles under the influence of external electromagnetic fields as well as the charged particle–electromagnetic field system governed by the Vlasov–Maxwell equations.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

A note on the solution of the variational equations of a class of dynamical systems

Some properties are derived for the solutions of the variational equations of a class of dynamical systems. It is shown that under rather general conditions, the matrix of the linearized Lagrangian equations of motion have an important property for which the word 'skew-symplectic' has been introduced. It is also shown that the fundamental matrix of solutions is 'symplectic', the word symplectic being used here in a more general sense than in the classical literature. Two consequences of the symplectic property are that the fundamental matrix is easily invertible and that the eigenvalues appear in reciprocal pairs. The effect of coordinate transformations is also analyzed; in particular, the change from Lagrangian to canonical systems.

Broucke, R.↗

Continuum electromagnetic gyrokinetic simulations of turbulence in the tokamak scrape-off layer and laboratory devices

Here, we present algorithms and results from Gkeyll, a full-f continuum, electromagnetic gyrokinetic code, designed to study turbulence in the edge region of fusion devices. The edge is computationally very challenging, requiring robust algorithms that can handle large-amplitude fluctuations and stable interactions with plasma sheaths. We present an energy-conserving high-order discontinuous Galerkin scheme that solves gyrokinetic equations in Hamiltonian form. Efficiency is improved by a careful choice of basis functions and automatically generated computation kernels. Previous verification tests were performed in the straight-field-line large plasma device [Shi et al., J. Plasma Phys. 83, 905830304 (2017)] and the Texas Helimak, a simple magnetized torus [Bernard et al., Phys. Plasmas 26, 042301 (2019)], including the effect of end-plate biasing on turbulence. Results for the scrape-off layer for NSTX parameters with a model helical magnetic geometry with bad curvature have been obtained [Shi et al., Phys. Plasmas 26, 012307 (2019)]. In this paper, we present algorithms for the two formulations of electromagnetic gyrokinetics: the Hamiltonian and the symplectic. We describe each formulation and show results of benchmark tests. Although our scheme works for the Hamiltonian formulation, the presence of spurious numerical modes for high-β and large $k^2_⊥ρ^2_s$ regimes shows that the symplectic formulation is more robust. We then review our recent algorithm for the symplectic formulation [Mandell et al., J. Plasma Phys. 86, 905860109 (2020)], along with example application of this new capability. Maintaining positivity of the distribution function can be challenging, and we describe a new and novel exponential recovery based algorithm to address this.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Quantum area fluctuations from gravitational phase space

We study the gravitational phase space associated to a stretched horizon within a finite-sized causal diamond in (d + 2)-dimensional spacetimes. By imposing the Raychaudhuri equation, we obtain its constrained symplectic form using the covariant phase space formalism and derive the relevant quantum commutators by inverting the symplectic form and quantizing. Finally, we compute the area fluctuations of the causal diamond by taking a Carrollian limit of the stretched horizon in pure Minkowski spacetime, and derive the relationship $\left\langle {\left(\Delta A\right)}^2\right\rangle \ge \frac{2\pi G}{d}\left\langle A\right\rangle$, showing that the variance of the area fluctuations is proportional to the area itself.

classical theories of gravity↗

Dynamical edge modes and entanglement in Maxwell theory

Abstract Previous work on black hole partition functions and entanglement entropy suggests the existence of “edge” degrees of freedom living on the (stretched) horizon. We identify a local and “shrinkable” boundary condition on the stretched horizon that gives rise to such degrees of freedom. They can be interpreted as the Goldstone bosons of gauge transformations supported on the boundary, with the electric field component normal to the boundary as their symplectic conjugate. Applying the covariant phase space formalism for manifolds with boundary, we show that both the symplectic form and Hamiltonian exhibit a bulk-edge split. We then show that the thermal edge partition function is that of a codimension-two ghost compact scalar living on the horizon. In the context of a de Sitter static patch, this agrees with the edge partition functions found by Anninos et al. in arbitrary dimensions. It also yields a 4D entanglement entropy consistent with the conformal anomaly. Generalizing to Proca theory, we find that the prescription of Donnelly and Wall reproduces existing results for its edge partition function, while its classical phase space does not exhibit a bulk-edge split.

Physics↗

Chapter Six - Derivation, cross-validation, and comparison of analytic formulas for electrostatic deflector aberrations

Here, we derived first and second order analytic aberration formulas in the horizontal transverse plane for an electrostatic deflector specified by the reference orbit radius, the central angle spanning the deflector, and its inhomogeneity coefficients. The derivation was performed using an iterative order-by-order perturbation method in a Frenet–Serret beamline coordinate system. We produced a C program edabrt for calculation of the first and second order aberrations using the formulas that we derived. The electrostatic deflector aberration formulas from Wollnik (1965) disagree with COSY INFINITY and the aberration formulas that we derived here, and they also deviate from the first and second order symplecticity conditions. The reason for this discrepancy is that the aberration formulas from Wollnik (1965) consider only motion in the main field of the deflector and do not properly account for fringe field effects, in particular the necessarily occurring change of kinetic energy due to the change in potential. The code GIOS uses electrostatic aberration formulas from Wollnik (1965) and exhibits the same discrepancy. We performed a comparison of first and second order electrostatic deflector aberrations for (1) the analytic formulas derived in this work, (2) differential-algebraic (DA) numerical integration of the equations of motion using the code COSY INFINITY, (3) the aberration formulas from Wollnik (1965), (4) aberrations computed using the code GIOS, and (5) the aberration formulas from Wollnik (1965) adjusted to account for the occurring change in potential. An electrostatic spherical deflector and an electrostatic cylindrical deflector were used as test cases for this comparison. There is excellent agreement between methods (1), (2), and (5), and these three methods satisfy the first and second order symplecticity conditions.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

Slow manifolds of classical Pauli particle enable structure-preserving geometric algorithms for guiding center dynamics

Since variational symplectic integrators for the guiding center was proposed, structure-preserving geometric algorithms have become an active research field in plasma physics. We found that the slow manifolds of the classical Pauli particle enable a family of structure-preserving geometric algorithms for guiding center dynamics with long-term stability and accuracy. This discovery overcomes the difficulty associated with the unstable parasitic modes for variational symplectic integrators when applied to the degenerate guiding center Lagrangian. It is a pleasant surprise that Pauli's Hamiltonian for electrons, which predated the Dirac equation and marks the beginning of particle physics, reappears in classical physics as an effective algorithm for solving an important plasma physics problem. This technique is applicable to other degenerate Lagrangians reduced from regular Lagrangians.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

The geometric theory of charge conservation in particle-in-cell simulations

In recent years, several gauge-symmetric particle-in-cell (PIC) methods have been developed whose simulations of particles and electromagnetic fields exactly conserve charge. While it is rightly observed that these methods’ gauge symmetry gives rise to their charge conservation, this causal relationship has generally been asserted via ad hoc derivations of the associated conservation laws. In this work, we develop a comprehensive theoretical grounding for charge conservation in gauge-symmetric Lagrangian and Hamiltonian PIC algorithms. For Lagrangian variational PIC methods, we apply Noether’s second theorem to demonstrate that gauge symmetry gives rise to a local charge conservation law as an off-shell identity. For Hamiltonian splitting methods, we show that the momentum map establishes their charge conservation laws. We define a new class of algorithms – gauge-compatible splitting methods – that exactly preserve the momentum map associated with a Hamiltonian system’s gauge symmetry – even after time discretization. This class of algorithms affords splitting schemes a decided advantage over alternative Hamiltonian integrators. We apply this general technique to design a novel, explicit, symplectic, gauge-compatible splitting PIC method, whose momentum map yields an exact local charge conservation law. Finally, our study clarifies the appropriate initial conditions for such schemes and examines their symplectic reduction.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Rotational bands beyond the Elliott model

Rotational bands are commonplace in the spectra of atomic nuclei. Inspired by early descriptions of these bands by quadrupole deformations of a liquid drop, Elliott constructed discrete nucleon representations of SU(3) from fermionic creation and annihilation operators. Ever since, Elliott's model has been foundational to descriptions of rotation in nuclei. Later work, however, suggested the symplectic extension Sp(3, R) provides a more unified picture. We decompose no-core shell-model nuclear wave functions into symmetry-defined subspaces for several beryllium isotopes, as well as 20 Ne, using the quadratic Casimirs of both Elliott's SU(3) and Sp(3, R). The band structure, delineated by strong B(E2) values, has a more consistent description in Sp(3, R) rather than SU(3). In particular, we confirm previous work finding in some nuclides strongly connected upper and lower bands with the same underlying symplectic structure.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

GFiRe—Gauge Field integrator for Reheating

We present a new numerical algorithm and code, GFiRe, for solving the nonlinear evolution of Abelian gauge fields coupled to complex scalar fields in homogeneous and isotropic spacetimes. We adopt a hybrid approach to solving the system: the spatial derivatives are discretized using standard Lattice Gauge Field Theory techniques, whereas the time evolution of the fields and scale factor is implemented with explicit, composite, symplectic integrators. An important property of our compound algorithm is that the discretized Gauss constraint is respected exactly, regardless of the order of the symplectic integrator. This remains true even when the background expansion is computed “self-consistently”; that is, when the expansion history is computed using spatial averaged components of the energy momentum tensor in the simulation volume. Hence, our code can also be used in cases where the fields dominate the energy density of the universe, for example, during reheating after inflation. We test the algorithm in scenarios of reheating where the inflaton is a complex scalar field with a potential ∝(2|Φ| 2 - v 2 ) 2 and is coupled to an Abelian gauge field. Tracing the evolution of the system through complex dynamics (including resonant excitation of fields, backreaction, formation of solitons, and changes in the equation of state) in a self-consistently expanding universe, we find the energy conservation violation (<10 -4 ) to be very stable and the Gauss constraint violation (<10 -6 ) to be dominated by differencing noise.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Explicit structure-preserving geometric particle-in-cell algorithm in curvilinear orthogonal coordinate systems and its applications to whole-device 6D kinetic simulations of tokamak physics

Explicit structure-preserving geometric particle-in-cell (PIC) algorithm in curvilinear orthogonal coordinate systems is developed. The work reported represents a further development of the structure-preserving geometric PIC algorithm achieving the goal of practical applications in magnetic fusion research. The algorithm is constructed by discretizing the field theory for the system of charged particles and electromagnetic field using Whitney forms, discrete exterior calculus, and explicit non-canonical symplectic integration. In addition to the truncated infinitely dimensional symplectic structure, the algorithm preserves exactly many important physical symmetries and conservation laws, such as local energy conservation, gauge symmetry and the corresponding local charge conservation. As a result, the algorithm possesses the long-term accuracy and fidelity required for first-principles-based simulations of the multiscale tokamak physics. The algorithm has been implemented in the SymPIC code, which is designed for high-efficiency massively-parallel PIC simulations in modern clusters. The code has been applied to carry out whole-device 6D kinetic simulation studies of tokamak physics. A self-consistent kinetic steady state for fusion plasma in the tokamak geometry is numerically found with a predominately diagonal and anisotropic pressure tensor. The state also admits a steady-state sub-sonic ion flow in the range of 10 km s -1 , agreeing with experimental observations and analytical calculations Kinetic ballooning instability in the self-consistent kinetic steady state is simulated. It is shown that high-n ballooning modes have larger growth rates than low-n global modes, and in the nonlinear phase the modes saturate approximately in 5 ion transit times at the 2% level by the E × B flow generated by the instability. These results are consistent with early and recent electromagnetic gyrokinetic simulations.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗