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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 91 records · Page 5
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Ponderomotive recoil for electromagnetic waves

When waves damp or amplify on resonant particles in a plasma, nonresonant particles experience a recoil force that conserves the total momentum between particles and electromagnetic fields. This force is important to understand, as it can completely negate current drive and rotation drive mechanisms that are predicted on the basis of only resonant particles. Here, the existing electrostatic theory of this recoil force is extended to electromagnetic waves. While the result bears close similarity to historical fluid theories of laser–plasma interactions, it now incorporates both resonant and nonresonant particles, allowing momentum conservation to be self-consistently proven. Furthermore, the result is shown to be generally valid for kinetic plasmas, which is verified through single-particle hot-plasma simulations. Here, the new form of the force provides physical insight into the nature of the generalized Minkowski (plasmon) momentum of geometrical optics, which is shown to correspond to the momentum gained by the field and nonresonant particles as the wave is self-consistently ramped up from vanishing amplitude.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2018

Selected Problems of the Mechanics of Coupled Fields

We present a brief survey of investigations carried out in recent years by the Lviv scientific school of the mechanics of coupled fields on the problems of construction and generalization of mathematical models and methods aimed at the description, determination, and optimization of the thermomechanical behavior of bodies under the combined action of force, thermal, and electromagnetic loads.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2019

Testing the Standard Model at the Precision Frontier with the Q weak Experiment

The standard model of particle physics (SM) has been wildly successful describing the strong, electromagnetic, and weak forces between visible matter. Despite this success, there is a host of phenomena it fails to describe, including neutrino oscillations, gravity, dark matter, and baryon asymmetry. Something is missing—the theory is not complete. This conviction has compelled physicists to develop ever-more-stringent tests in the hope of finding cracks in the SM that could point to where the beyond-the-standard-model (BSM) physics might lie. Direct searches at high-energy colliders have yielded no evidence for some of the most intriguing possibilities, like supersymmetry, and have not been able to shed much light on where to look next.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Width-bending characteristic of REBCO HTS tape and flat-tape Rutherford-type cabling

Abstract The width-bending behaviors for a rare earth barium copper oxide (REBCO) high-temperature superconducting (HTS) tape have been investigated. It has been found experimentally that the width-bending strain of a Yttrium Barium Copper Oxide (YBCO) tape does not degrade the critical current as much as is expected from the axial strain. The critical current is not directly affected by the width-bending strain but by the axial strain, which the width-bending strain generates by the Poisson effect. Since Poisson’s ratio is about 0.3, the axial strain effective on the critical current is about 30% of the width-bending strain. Therefore, the width-bending strain of even 1.5% degrades the critical current by only 15% if the REBCO layer side is bent inward. However, the critical current degraded by more than 70% when the REBCO layer is outward. The width-bending effects on the critical current have been further examined, considering Poisson’s ratio changes and the neutral plane shift of the REBCO tape substrate. Those changes would occur when the material yields due to severe width-bending. Based on the width-bending of REBCO tapes, flat-tape Rutherford-type cabling is discussed. A REBCO Rutherford-type cable can provide various advantages, especially for narrow-tape cabling. The flat-tape Rutherford-type cable has better characteristics against an electromagnetic transverse Lorentz force. Furthermore, the tape length of the cable can be approximately the same as the cable length allowing for excellent tape usage. REBCO Rutherford-type cabling will be a promising high-current, high-field cabling method using thin substrate REBCO tapes. It will be useful for AC ramp-field and pulse-field applications with low AC losses and low shield currents. It notes that the filaments in the cable are symmetrically distributed in parallel. Therefore, each filament’s inductance is uniform, and a uniform current distribution among the filaments can be obtained.

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2019

Measurements of the Strain Dependence of Critical Current of Commercial REBCO Tapes at 15 T Between 4.2 and 40 K for High Field Magnets

Interest for high magnetic fields (>16 T) for applications in high energy physics (HEP) and fusion machines, requires the development of high current cables capable to withstand the large forces, mechanical and electromagnetic, experienced during manufacturing and operations. The critical current (I c ) of REBCO tapes depends on strain, magnetic fields, and operational temperatures. Understanding how these parameters affect the I c of the conductor will be critical to develop robust high-current REBCO cables. However, there are limited reports on the strain dependence of I c , in particular at high fields and elevated temperatures relevant for future high-field compact fusion reactor magnets. We present here I c of commercial REBCO tapes measured as a function of compressive and tensile strain (between -0.6% and +0.65%) at high magnetic fields (12 and 15 T) and different temperatures (within 4.2-40 K). Results at 4.2 and 20 K showed less than 5% reduction in the normalized I c at high strain, while a stronger strain dependence was observed at 40 K. Samples tested at 12 T and 4.2 K showed similar strain dependence as 15 T and 4.2 K. In all tested conditions, the tape experienced reversible I c reduction in both tension and compression. Finite element analysis was used to predict the residual thermal strain accumulated in the REBCO layer prior of testing to account for the effect of the cooldown. A method was also developed to account for the current sharing observed between the sample and the sample holder during the ramp of the current. Our results provide useful input for the development of high-field fusion and HEP magnets using REBCO conductors.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2022

Simulating the filamentation of smoothed laser beams with three-dimensional nonlinear dynamics

In a plasma, the ponderomotive force of an inhomogeneous electromagnetic field expels plasma from regions of high intensity. When a laser propagates through a plasma, this force creates density wells that subsequently modify the index of refraction. The beam refracts and focuses into these wells and may filament. In extreme cases, the laser beam will spray due to increasing angular divergence of the beam. The threshold for ponderomotive self-focusing is well established for isolated laser hotspots or speckles. Here, we define a practical threshold for characterizing the filamentation of thousands of speckles that are found in the focal plane of high-power laser beams spatially smoothed with random phase plates as used at high energy and power laser facilities studying inertial confinement fusion. This threshold is tested against three-dimensional simulations of speckled laser light propagating through plasma. Four metrics are applied to assess filamentation: the fraction of power above five times the average intensity, an effective f-number, the mean-squared perpendicular wavenumber, and the fraction of rarefied density with deviation from the initial density exceeding | δn/ n| = 0.1. The speckled beams studied are generated by random phase plates, both with and without additional polarization smoothing, in a parameter regime of relevance to indirect drive experiments. While filamentation has been discussed extensively in the literature, we believe this to be the first published simulation study with three-dimensional nonlinear hydrodynamics that addresses the onset threshold of ponderomotive filamentation and establishes the lengths and time scales necessary to reach a statistical steady state.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2018

New Aspects of the Fluctuation-Electromagnetic Theory of Friction and Radiative Heat Exchange of Levine–Polevoi–Rytov in a System of Two Parallel Plates

It has been shown that the fundamental results obtained in the works by Levine, Polevoi, and Rytov (1980) and Polevoi (1990) adequately describe the rate of radiative heat exchange and dissipative frictional force in a system of two parallel plates in relative lateral motion. Within the framework of the Levine–Polevoi–Rytov theory, a new expression has been obtained for the force of fluctuation-electromagnetic friction of two plates in the terms of local dielectric permittivities and magnetic permeabilities of the plate materials.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2022

Drive-Leg Kinematics During the Windup and Pushoff Is Associated With Pitching Kinetics at Later Phases of the Pitch

Background: Inconsistent findings exist between drive-leg ground-reaction forces (GRFs) and pitching mechanics. Previous literature has largely reported drive-leg mechanics and GRFs at the start of the pushoff phase for their role in initiating force development. Little research has assessed drive-leg kinematics that includes a pitcher’s windup motion to determine its effects on subsequent phases in the pitching motion. Purpose/Hypothesis: The primary aim was to analyze the relationship between drive-leg knee valgus angle during the windup and subsequent pitching mechanics. We hypothesized that the drive-leg knee valgus angle during the early portion of the pitching motion would alter later phases’ pitching mechanics. A secondary aim was to assess GRFs to determine if the drive-leg knee valgus angle was associated with changes in force. We hypothesized that an increased drive-leg knee valgus angle would increase GRFs during the pitching motion. Study Design: Descriptive laboratory study. Methods: A total of 17 high school baseball pitchers (mean age, 16.1 ± 0.9 years; mean height, 180.0 ± 4.8 cm; mean weight, 75.5 ± 7.5 kg) volunteered for the study. Kinematic data and GRFs were collected using an electromagnetic tracking system and force plates. Pitchers threw maximal-effort fastballs from a mound at regulation distance. The drive-leg knee valgus angle was analyzed during the windup and pushoff phases of the pitch to determine its effects on other biomechanical variables throughout the pitching motion. Results: There was a significant relationship between drive-leg knee valgus angle during the windup ( Fchange 1,12) = 16.13; P = .002; R 2 = 0.695) and lateral GRF in the arm-cocking phase. Additionally, there was a significant relationship between drive-leg knee valgus angle during pushoff ( Fchange(2,11) = 10.21; P = .003; R 2 = 0.716) and lateral GRF in the arm-cocking phase and pitching-elbow valgus moment in the acceleration phase. Conclusion: Drive-leg knee valgus angle during the windup and pushoff had a significant relationship with drive-leg GRF and pitching-elbow valgus moment at later stages of the pitching cycle. Clinical Relevance: Assessments of drive-leg kinematics during the windup and pushoff may be useful in identifying inefficient movement patterns that can have an effect on the direction of a pitcher’s drive-leg force contribution, which can lead to increased forces on the throwing elbow.

Orthopedics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Ponderomotive electron physics captured in a single-fluid extended magnetohydrodynamics model

The ponderomotive force, arising from the interaction between electromagnetic waves and plasma, plays a critical role in laser fusion, astrophysical plasmas, and laser diagnostics. Traditionally, modeling this force requires multi-fluid or particle-in-cell simulations due to its strong coupling to electron-scale dynamics. In this work, we demonstrate that a one-fluid, two-temperature extended magnetohydrodynamics (XMHD) model—augmented with a generalized Ohm's law (GOL) including electron inertia—can accurately reproduce key ponderomotive effects. We derive the ponderomotive force within this framework using a phasor-based approach and then validate its nonlinear manifestations through direct numerical simulations in the PERSEUS code, where steepening and density modulation phenomena typically associated with kinetic-scale models are reproduced. These results and prior work establish XMHD as a robust and efficient alternative for modeling nonlinear laser–plasma dynamics, bridging the gap between ideal MHD and fully kinetic approaches.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2019

Magnetic Field-Suppressed Lithium Dendrite Growth for Stable Lithium-Metal Batteries

Lithium metal is the most attractive anode material due to its extremely high specific capacity, minimum potential, and low density. However, uncontrollable growth of lithium dendrite results in severe safety and cycling stability concerns, which hinders the application in next generation secondary batteries. In this paper, a new and facile method imposing a magnetic field to lithium metal anodes is proposed. That is, the lithium ions suffering Lorentz force due to the electromagnetic fields are put into spiral motion causing magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) effect. This MHD effect can effectively promote mass transfer and uniform distribution of lithium ions to suppress the dendrite growth as well as obtain uniform and compact lithium deposition. The results show that the lithium metal electrodes within the magnetic field exhibit excellent cycling and rate performance in a symmetrical battery. Additionally, full batteries using limited lithium metal as anodes and commercial LiFePO 4 as cathodes show improved performance within the magnetic field. In summary, a new and facile strategy of suppressing lithium dendrites using the MHD effect by imposing a magnetic field is proposed, which may be generalized to other advanced alkali metal batteries.

25 ENERGY STORAGE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Design of a Novel Variable Geometry Divertor for Tokamaks

The divertor is a key component of fusion reactors, allowing exhaust of gas, impurities, and helium ash to preserve plasma purity. The divertor geometry strongly affects plasma performance, and it is designed to be compatible with different plasma shapes in present-day fusion experiments. Here, we present a novel concept for a variable geometry divertor, in which the divertor baffle tiles are reorientable by external actuation. Implementation of this concept in a medium-sized research tokamak would uniquely provide the flexibility to tailor divertor geometry to the plasma configuration and also enable study of the effect of divertor closure on plasma performance. To ensure compatibility with typical tokamak operations, the adjustable divertor must withstand the effects of significant mechanical and thermal stresses such as MW/m 2 -scale heat fluxes and large electromagnetic fields, e.g., disruption forces. The technological solutions for actuation mechanisms, cooling system, gas baffling and plasma-facing components are assessed. A functional reduced-scale model with movable outer divertor target baffle tiles is developed and the actuation mechanism is tested.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2025

Magnetosphere Evolution and Precursor-driven Electromagnetic Signals in Merging Binary Neutron Stars

We detail new force-free simulations to investigate magnetosphere evolution and precursor electromagnetic (EM) signals from binary neutron stars. Our simulations fully follow a representative inspiral motion, capturing the intricate magnetospheric dynamics and their impact on EM outflows. We explore a range of stellar magnetic moment orientations and relative strengths, finding that the magnetospheres and Poynting flux evolution are strongly configuration dependent. The Poynting flux exhibits pulsations at twice the orbital frequency, 2Ω, and is highly anisotropic, following a power-law dependence on orbital frequency. The index ranges from 1 to 6, shaped by the intricate dynamics of the magnetospheres. Furthermore, we present the first computation of (1) the EM forces acting on the star surfaces, revealing the presence of torques that, for highly magnetized stars, could influence the orbital dynamics or break the crust; (2) the high-energy emission signals from these systems by adopting the established isolated pulsar theory. Assuming curvature radiation in the radiation-reaction limit, we find that photons could reach TeV–PeV energies in the last ∼ms for magnetic field strengths 10 10 –10 15 G. However, our analysis of single photon magnetic pair production suggests that these photons are unlikely to escape, with the MeV band emerging as a promising observational window for precursor high-energy emission. In this framework, we construct high-energy emission skymaps and light curves, exploring observational implications. Finally, we propose potential precursor radio emission and delayed afterglow echoes from magnetized outflows, which may contribute to late-time rebrightening in short gamma-ray bursts or to orphan afterglows.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Amplification due to two-stream instability of self-electric and magnetic fields of an ion beam propagating in background plasma

Propagation of charged particle beams in background plasma as a method of space charge neutralization has been shown to achieve a high degree of charge and current neutralization and therefore enables nearly ballistic propagation and focusing of charged particle beams. Correspondingly, the use of plasmas for propagation of charged particle beams has important applications for transport and focusing of intense particle beams in inertial fusion and high energy density laboratory plasma physics. However, the streaming of beam ions through a background plasma can lead to the development of two-stream instability between the beam ions and the plasma electrons. The beam electric and magnetic fields enhanced by the two-stream instability can lead to defocusing of the ion beam. Using particle-in-cell simulations, we study the scaling of the instability-driven self-electromagnetic fields and consequent defocusing forces with the background plasma density and beam ion mass. In conclusion, we identify plasma parameters where the defocusing forces can be reduced.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2017

Quantum friction in arbitrarily directed motion

In quantum friction, the electromagnetic fluctuation-induced frictional force decelerating an atom which moves past a macroscopic dielectric body, has so far eluded experimental evidence despite more than three decades of theoretical studies. Inspired by the recent finding that dynamical corrections to such an atom's internal dynamics are enhanced by one order of magnitude for vertical motion—compared with the paradigmatic setup of parallel motion—here we generalize quantum friction calculations to arbitrary angles between the atom's direction of motion and the surface in front of which it moves. Motivated by the disagreement between quantum friction calculations based on Markovian quantum master equations and time-dependent perturbation theory, we carry out our derivations of the quantum frictional force for arbitrary angles by employing both methods and compare them.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Gogny-force-derived effective shell-model Hamiltonian

The density-dependent finite-range Gogny force has been used to derive the effective Hamiltonian for the shell-model calculations of nuclei. The density dependence simulates an equivalent three-body force, while the finite range gives a Gaussian distribution of the interaction in the momentum space and hence leads to an automatic smooth decoupling between low-momentum and high-momentum components of the interaction, which is important for finite-space shell-model calculations. Two-body interaction matrix elements, single-particle energies, and the core energy of the shell model can be determined by the unified Gogny force. The analytical form of the Gogny force is advantageous to treat cross-shell cases, while it is difficult to determine the cross-shell matrix elements and single-particle energies using an empirical Hamiltonian by fitting experimental data with a large number of matrix elements. In this paper, we have applied the Gogny-force effective shell-model Hamiltonian to the p- and sd-shell nuclei. The results show good agreements with experimental data and other calculations using empirical Hamiltonians. The experimentally known neutron drip line of oxygen isotopes and the ground states of typical nuclei 10B and 18N can be reproduced, in which the role of three-body force is non-negligible. Here, the Gogny-force-derived effective Hamiltonian has also been applied to the cross-shell calculations of the sd–pf shell.

20 ≤ A ≤ 38↗
DOE OSTI2024

A self-consistent Hamiltonian model of the ponderomotive force and its structure preserving discretization

In the presence of an inhomogeneous oscillatory electric field, charged particles experience a net force, averaged over the oscillatory timescale, known as the ponderomotive force. We derive a one-dimensional Hamiltonian model which self-consistently couples the electromagnetic field to a plasma which experiences the ponderomotive force. We derive a family of structure preserving discretizations of the model of varying order in space and time using conforming and broken finite element exterior calculus spectral element methods. In all variants of our discretization framework, the method is found to conserve the Casimir invariants of the continuous model to machine precision and the energy to the order of the splitting method used.

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2019

A helical-shape scintillating fiber trigger and tracker system for the DarkLight experiment and beyond

The search for new physics beyond the Standard Model has interesting possibilities at low energies. For example, the recent 6.8σ anomaly reported in the invariant mass of e + e - pairs from 8 Be nuclear transitions and the discrepancy between predicted and measured values of muon g-2 give strong motivations for a protophobic fifth-force model. At low energies, the electromagnetic interaction is well understood and produces straightforward final states, making it an excellent probe of such models. However, to achieve the required precision, an experiment must address the substantially higher rate of electromagnetic backgrounds. Here in this paper, we present the results of simulation studies of a trigger system, motivated by the DarkLight experiment, using helical-shape scintillating fibers in a solenoidal magnetic field to veto electron–proton elastic scattering and the associated radiative processes. We also assess the performance of a tracking detector for lepton final states using scintillating fibers in the same setup.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2024

Dark black holes in the mass gap

Abstract In the standard picture of stellar evolution, pair-instability — the energy loss in stellar cores due to electron-positron pair production — is predicted to prevent the collapse of massive stars into black holes with mass in the range between approximately 50 and 130 solar masses — a range known as the “black hole mass gap”. LIGO and Virgo detection of black hole binary mergers containing one or both black holes with masses in thismass gapthus challenges the standard picture, possibly pointing to an unexpected merger history, unanticipated or poorly understood astrophysical mechanisms, or new physics. Here, we entertain the possibility that a “dark sector” exists, consisting of dark electrons, dark protons, and electromagnetic-like interactions, but no nuclear forces. Dark stars would inevitably form given such dark sector constituents, possibly collapsing into black holes with masses within the mass gap. We study in detail the cooling processes necessary for successful stellar collapse in the dark sector and show that for suitable choices of the particle masses, we indeed predict populating the mass gap with dark sector black holes. In particular, we numerically find that the heavier of the two dark sector massive particles cannot be lighter than, approximately, the visible sector proton for the resulting dark sector black holes to have masses within the mass gap. We discuss constraints on this scenario and how to test it with future, larger black hole merger statistics.

Astronomy & Astrophysics↗