Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “PROPAGATION MODE”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 109 records · Page 6
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2009

Tuning a Tetrahertz Wire Laser

Tunable terahertz lasers are desirable in applications in sensing and spectroscopy because many biochemical species have strong spectral fingerprints at terahertz frequencies. Conventionally, the frequency of a laser is tuned in a similar manner to a stringed musical instrument, in which pitch is varied by changing the length of the string (the longitudinal component of the wave vector) and/ or its tension (the refractive index). However, such methods are difficult to implement in terahertz semiconductor lasers because of their poor outcoupling efficiencies. Here, we demonstrate a novel tuning mechanism based on a unique 'wire laser' device for which the transverse dimension w is much much less than lambda. Placing a movable object close to the wire laser manipulates a large fraction of the waveguided mode propagating outside the cavity, thereby tuning its resonant frequency. Continuous single-mode redshift and blueshift tuning is demonstrated for the same device by using either a dielectric or metallic movable object. In combination, this enables a frequency tuning of approximately equal to 137 GHz (3.6%) from a single laser device at approximately equal to 3.8 THz.

Qin, Qi↗
NASA NTRS1987

The normal modes of the thermosphere

The linearized momentum, energy, and continuity equations for the thermosphere can be reduced to a form that gives the vertical structure for each horizontal wave mode. The vertical structure equation can be described in terms of the normal modes, or eigenmodes, of the thermosphere. The latter are obtained by using a 27-layer model that includes a realistic temperature profile and the effects of the Lorentz force, viscosity, and heat conduction. The normal modes have one real eigenfrequency for every two complex conjugate eigenfrequency values. The real modes have a dominant rotational wind component and are nonpropagating. The complex modes have comparable divergent and rotational wind components. The complex eigenvalues give vertically propagating modes, primarily associated with the transient response to forcing, and are significantly affected by the dissipation in the upper E region and F region. Results show that the rotational wind component dominates in the steady state when the forcing is due to the two-cell convection pattern at high latitudes and that the normal modes explain the large shears and large winds speeds that are typically observed in the high-latitude E region. The vertical energy flux for the normal modes is also calculated. The results show that the flux is upward above 130 km but downward in the lower E region for the total solution. The downward energy flux is a contribution from the real eigenmode structure.

Larsen, M. F.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Direct Numerical Simulation of Partial Fuel Stratification Assisted Lean Premixed Combustion for Assessment of Hybrid G-Equation/Well-Stirred Reactor Model

Partial fuel stratification (PFS) is a promising fuel injection strategy to stabilize lean premixed combustion in spark-ignition (SI) engines. PFS creates a locally stratified mixture by injecting a fraction of the fuel, just before spark timing, into the engine cylinder containing homogeneous lean fuel/air mixture. Further, this locally stratified mixture, when ignited, results in complex flame structure and propagation modes similar to partially premixed flames and allows for faster and more stable flame propagation than a homogeneous lean mixture. This study focuses on understanding the detailed flame structures associated with PFS-assisted lean premixed combustion. First, a two-dimensional direct numerical simulation (DNS) is performed using detailed fuel chemistry, experimental pressure trace, and realistic initial conditions mapped from a prior engine large-eddy simulation (LES), replicating practical lean SI operating conditions. DNS results suggest that the conventional triple flame structure is prevalent during the initial stage of flame kernel growth. Both premixed and nonpremixed combustion modes are present with the premixed mode contributing dominantly to the total heat release. Detailed analysis further reveals the effects of flame stretch and fuel pyrolysis on flame displacement speed. Based on the DNS findings, the accuracy of a hybrid G-equation/well-stirred reactor (WSR) combustion model is assessed for the PFS-assisted lean operation in the LES context. It is found that the G-equation model qualitatively captures the premixed branches of the triple flame, while the WSR model predicts the nonpremixed branch of the triple flame. Finally, potential needs for improvements to the hybrid G-equation/WSR modeling approach are discussed.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗
NASA NTRS1987

Bow-tie antennas on a dielectric half-space - Theory and experiment

A new formulation is discussed for the rigous calculation of the radiation pattern of a bow-tie antenna of finite length and infinitesimal thickness, placed on a lossless dielectric substrate. The analysis is based on a representation of the current density on the metal surface of the antenna as a sum of an imposed (quasistatic) term and a set of current modes with unknown amplitudes. Free-space fields that are expressed in terms of continuous spectra of symmetrized plane waves are matched to the current modes using the method of moments. The resulting set of equations are solved for the unknown current amplitudes. The calculations show that for increasing bow length the antenna impedance spirals rapidly to a value predicted by transmission line theory. The theory also shows that the E-plane pattern of a two-wavelength, 60-deg bow-tie antenna is dominated by low-loss current modes propagating at the dielectric wavenumber. As the bow tie narrows, the loss of the modes increases, and the dominant wavenumber tends to the quasi-static value. Pattern measurements made at 94 GHz are shown to agree well with theoretical predictions. Measurements for a long-wire antenna, a linear array of bow-tie elements, and a log-periodic antenna are also presented.

Compton, Richard C.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Propagation in a shearing plasma. III - Magnetic field effects and pulsar microstructure periods

Effects of a magnetic field on wave and pulse propagation in a shearing plasma are investigated. Equations for the wave fields are derived from Maxwell's equations and the Minkowski relations for an anisotropic medium, when the magnetic field is parallel to the shearing velocity. The independent propagation modes are elliptically polarized in the stationary frame and vary with the velocity of the medium. Numerical calculations are presented which show the propagation of waves and pulses through a plane-parallel shearing plasma in the case of weak and strong fields. It is found that in a weak field, propagation effects are very similar to those previously found in field-free models: the transmitted pulses acquire temporal modulations whose period is frequency dependent. In a strong field, the period of the temporal modulations is independent of frequency. Transmitted pulses can also undergo polarization changes as a result of phase differences between modes. These results are discussed in relation to their significance to propagation in a pulsar magnetosphere and, in particular, to a model for pulse microstructure.

Harding, A. K.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Lunar electromagnetic scattering. III - Propagation at arbitrary angles to the cavity axis

An analytic theory is developed for both the steady state and the time-dependent electric and magnetic fields inside the moon and its downstream cavity for interplanetary electromagnetic field fluctuations incident at arbitrary angles to the cavity axis. The moon model has an electrical conductivity, electrical permittivity, and magnetic permeability which vary arbitrarily with radius. The cavity downstream of the moon in the solar wind is assumed to be an infinitely long nonconducting cylinder. If the interplanetary field fluctuations propagate parallel to the cavity, the far cavity field is a single cylindrical transverse electric mode propagating downstream with the same frequency, wavelength, and phase velocity as the interplanetary field. The far cavity field is the result of a forced surface wave on the cylindrical boundary of the void. When the interplanetary fluctuations are incident at an arbitrary angle to the cavity axis, the far cavity field is a superposition of an infinite number of cylindrical TE and TM modes.

Horning, B. L.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Transient motion of thick anisotropic plates

Analyses are developed for the response of anisotropic plate strips to a transient load. The load is taken in the form of a line load of normal stress on the surface or within the body of the strip. The characteristic free vibrational modes of the strip are derived and used to derive the secular equation for this case in closed form and to isolate the mathematical conditions for symmetric and antisymmetric wave mode propagation in completely separate terms. The applied loads are expanded in terms of these normal modes and the response of the plate is obtained by superposition of the appropriate components. Material systems of higher symmetry are contained implicitly in the analysis.

Nayfeh, Adnan H.↗
NASA NTRS2006

Few-Mode Whispering-Gallery-Mode Resonators

Whispering-gallery-mode (WGM) optical resonators of a type now under development are designed to support few well-defined waveguide modes. In the simplest case, a resonator of this type would support one equatorial family of WGMs; in a more complex case, such a resonator would be made to support two, three, or some other specified finite number of modes. Such a resonator can be made of almost any transparent material commonly used in optics. The nature of the supported modes does not depend on which material is used, and the geometrical dispersion of this resonator is much smaller than that of a typical prior WGM resonator. Moreover, in principle, many such resonators could be fabricated as integral parts of a single chip. Basically, a resonator of this type consists of a rod, made of a suitable transparent material, from which protrudes a thin circumferential belt of the same material. The belt is integral with the rest of the rod (see figure) and acts as a circumferential waveguide. If the depth (d) and width (w) of the belt are made appropriately small, then the belt acts as though it were the core of a single-mode optical fiber: the belt and its adjacent supporting rod material support a single, circumferentially propagating mode or family of modes. It has been shown theoretically that the fiber-optic-like behavior of the belton- rod resonator structure can be summarized, in part, by the difference, Dn, between (1) an effective index of refraction of an imaginary fiber core and (2) the index of refraction (n) of the transparent rod/belt material. It has also been shown theoretically that for a given required value of Dn, the required depth of the belt can be estimated as d R Dn, where R is the radius of the rod. It must be emphasized that this estimated depth is independent of n and, hence, is independent of the choice of rod material. As in the cases of prior WGM resonators, input/output optical coupling involves utilization of evanescent fields. In the present case, there are two evanescent fields: one at the belt/air interface and one in the boundary region between the belt and the rest of the rod.

Savchenkov, Anatoliy↗
NASA NTRS1992

Ion heating by kinetic cross-field streaming instability due to reflected ions at a quasiperpendicular shock

The present paper shows that the reflected ion at a supercritical quasi-perpendicular shock wave can excite a purely growing mode propagating parallel to the ambient magnetic field. To discuss the ion heating by such an unstable mode, the self-consistent quasi-linear kinetic equation is solved with the assumption that the present purely growing mode is the dominant unstable mode in the system. In the quasi-linear analysis of the instability, two particular cases are considered: the case of low initial ion beta and that of a high initial ion beta.

Yoon, Peter H.↗
NASA NTRS2008

Single-Mode WGM Resonators Fabricated by Diamond Turning

A diamond turning process has made possible a significant advance in the art of whispering-gallery-mode (WGM) optical resonators. By use of this process, it is possible to fashion crystalline materials into WGM resonators that have ultrahigh resonance quality factors (high Q values), are compact (ranging in size from millimeters down to tens of microns), and support single electromagnetic modes. This development combines and extends the developments reported in "Few- Mode Whispering-Gallery-Mode Resonators" (NPO-41256), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 30, No. 1 (January 2006), page 16a and "Fabrication of Submillimeter Axisymmetric Optical Components" (NPO-42056), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 31, No. 5 (May 2007), page 10a. To recapitulate from the first cited prior article: A WGM resonator of this special type consists of a rod, made of a suitable transparent material, from which protrudes a thin circumferential belt of the same material. The belt is integral with the rest of the rod and acts as a circumferential waveguide. If the depth and width of the belt are made appropriately small, then the belt acts as though it were the core of a single-mode optical fiber: the belt and the rod material adjacent to it support a single, circumferentially propagating mode or family of modes. To recapitulate from the second cited prior article: A major step in the fabrication of a WGM resonator of this special type is diamond turning or computer numerically controlled machining of a rod of a suitable transparent crystalline material on an ultrahigh-precision lathe. During the rotation of a spindle in which the rod is mounted, a diamond tool is used to cut the rod. A computer program is used to control stepping motors that move the diamond tool, thereby controlling the shape cut by the tool. Because the shape can be controlled via software, it is possible to choose a shape designed to optimize a resonator spectrum, including, if desired, to limit the resonator to supporting a single mode. After diamond turning, a resonator can be polished to increase its Q. By virtue of its largely automated, computer-controlled nature, the process is suitable for mass production of nominally identical single-mode WGM resonators. In a demonstration of the capabilities afforded by this development, a number of WGM resonators of various designs were fabricated side by side on the surface of a single CaF2 rod (see figure).

Grudinin, Ivan↗
NASA NTRS1983

Auroral hiss, Z mode radiation, and auroral kilometric radiation in the polar magnetosphere - DE 1 observations

The polar-orbiting DE 1 spacecraft has provided the first measurements of high-latitude auroral phenomena. Three types of plasma-wave emissions were observed: auroral hiss, Z-mode radiation, and auroral kilometric radiation. Whistler mode auroral hiss emissions were observed on virtually every pass over the auroral zone. The shape of the auroral hiss frequency-time spectrum is explained by a whistler mode propagation effect if the radiation is emitted from a spatially localized source below the spacecraft. Broadband Z emissions have been observed in the low-density region over the auroral zone and polar cap. The auroral hiss may be distinguished from the Z-mode radiation by the sharp upper cutoff of the whistler mode at the local electron plasma frequency. Auroral kilometric radiation usually occurs at frequencies above electron gyrofrequency, indicating that this radiation is propagating in the free-space R-X mode.

Gurnett, D. A.↗
NASA NTRS2013

Multimode Directional Coupler for Utilization of Harmonic Frequencies from TWTAs

A novel waveguide multimode directional coupler (MDC) intended for the measurement and potential utilization of the second and higher order harmonic frequencies from high-power traveling wave tube amplifiers (TWTAs) has been successfully designed, fabricated, and tested. The design is based on the characteristic multiple propagation modes of the electrical and magnetic field components of electromagnetic waves in a rectangular waveguide. The purpose was to create a rugged, easily constructed, more efficient waveguide- based MDC for extraction and exploitation of the second harmonic signal from the RF output of high-power TWTs used for space communications. The application would be a satellitebased beacon source needed for Qband and V/W-band atmospheric propagation studies. The MDC could function as a CW narrow-band source or as a wideband source for study of atmospheric group delay effects on highdata- rate links. The MDC is fabricated from two sections of waveguide - a primary one for the fundamental frequency and a secondary waveguide for the second harmonic - that are joined together such that the second harmonic higher order modes are selectively coupled via precision- machined slots for propagation in the secondary waveguide. In the TWTA output waveguide port, both the fundamental and the second harmonic signals are present. These signals propagate in the output waveguide as the dominant and higher order modes, respectively. By including an appropriate mode selective waveguide directional coupler, such as the MDC presented here at the output of the TWTA, the power at the second harmonic can be sampled and amplified to the power level needed for atmospheric propagation studies. The important conclusions from the preliminary test results for the multimode directional coupler are: (1) the second harmonic (Ka-band) can be measured and effectively separated from the fundamental (Ku-band) with no coupling of the latter, (2) power losses in the fundamental frequency are negligible, and (3) the power level of the extracted second harmonic is sufficient for further amplification to power levels needed for practical applications. It was also demonstrated that third order and potentially higher order harmonics are measurable with this device. The design is frequency agnostic, and with the appropriate choice of waveguides, is easily scaled to higher frequency TWTs. The MDC has the same function but with a number of important advantages over the conventional diplexer.

Simmons, Rainee N.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Propagation of Flexural Mode AE Signals in GR/EP Composite Plates

It has been documented that AE signals propagate in thin plates as extensional and flexural plate modes. This was demonstrated using simulated AE sources (pencil lead breaks) by Gorman on thin aluminum and gr/ep composite plates and by Gorman and Prosser on thin aluminum plates. A typical signal from a pencil lead break source which identifies these two modes is shown. AE signals from transverse matrix cracking sources in gr/ep composite plates were also shown to propagate as plate modes by Gorman and Ziola. Smith showed that crack growth events in thin aluminum plates under spectrum fatigue loading produced signals that propagated as plate modes. Additionally, Prosser et al. showed that AE signals propagated as plate modes in a thin walled composite tube.

Prosser, W. H.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Non-relativistic solar electrons

Summary of both the direct spacecraft observations of nonrelativistic solar electrons, and observations of the X-ray and radio emission generated by these particles at the sun and in the interplanetary medium. These observations bear on three physical processes basic to energetic particle phenomena: (1) the acceleration of particles in tenuous plasmas; (2) the propagation of energetic charged particles in a disordered magnetic field, and (3) the interaction of energetic charged particles with tenuous plasmas to produce electromagnetic radiation. Because these electrons are frequently accelerated and emitted by the sun, mostly in small and relatively simple flares, it is possible to define a detailed physical picture of these processes. In many small solar flares nonrelativistic electrons accelerated during flash phase constitute the bulk of the total flare energy. Thus the basic flare mechanism in these flares essentially converts the available flare energy into fast electrons. Nonrelativistic electrons exhibit a wide variety of propagation modes in the interplanetary medium, ranging from diffusive to essentially scatter-free. This variability in the propagation may be explained in terms of the distribution of interplanetary magnetic field fluctuations.

Lin, R. P.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Complexity and Intermittent Turbulence in Space Plasmas

Sporadic and localized interactions of coherent structures arising from plasma resonances can be the origin of "complexity" of the coexistence of non- propagating spatiotemporal fluctuations and propagating modes in space plasmas. Numerical simulation results are presented to demonstrate the intermittent character of the non-propagating fluctuations. The technique of the dynamic renormalization-group is introduced and applied to the study of scale invariance of such type of multiscale fluctuations. We also demonstrate that the particle interactions with the intermittent turbulence can lead to the efficient energization of the plasma populations. An example related to the ion acceleration processes in the auroral zone is provided.

Chang, Tom↗
DOE OSTI2020

Onset of interfacial waves in the terahertz spectrum of a nanoparticle suspension

We used inelastic x-ray scattering to gain insight into the complex terahertz dynamics of a diluted Au-nanoparticle suspension in glycerol. Here, we observe that, albeit sparse, Au nanoparticles leave clear signatures on the dynamic response of the system, the main one being an additional mode propagating at the nanoparticle-glycerol interface. A Bayesian inferential analysis of the line shape reveals that such a mode, at variance with conventional acoustic modes, keeps a hydrodynamiclike behavior well beyond the continuous limit and down to subnanometer distances.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
NASA NTRS1972

Laser amplification in an inhomogeneous plasma

The propagation of an electromagnetic wave into an inhomogeneous plasma was studied. In a plasma with large density gradients a QTX mode propagating perpendicular to the magnetic field can encounter a resonance and a cutoff separated by a distance comparable to the incident wave length. In this region the wave is evanescent, and in general there will be a reflected and transmitted wave, and amplification will occur in the region near the resonance. The amplification is important for the study of nonlinear phenomena and for feedback stabilization applications.

White, R.↗