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DOE OSTI2026

Strangeness enhancement at its extremes: multiple (multi-)strange hadron production in pp collisions at $\sqrt{s}=5.02$ TeV

The probability to observe a specific number of strange and multi-strange hadrons (nS), denoted as P(nS), is measured by ALICE at midrapidity (|y| < 0.5) in $$\sqrt{s}=5.02$$ TeV proton-proton (pp) collisions, dividing events into several multiplicity-density classes. Exploiting, for the first time, a technique based on counting the number of strange-particle candidates event-by-event, this measurement allows one to extend the study of strangeness production beyond the mean of the distribution. This constitutes a new test bench for production mechanisms, probing events with a large imbalance between strange and non-strange content. The analysis of a large-statistics data sample makes it possible to extract P(nS) up to a maximum nS of 7 for $${\text{K}}_{\text{S}}^{0}$$, 5 for Λ and $$\overline{\Lambda }$$, 4 for Ξ− and $${\overline{\Xi } }^{+}$$, and 2 for Ω− and $${\overline{\Omega } }^{+}$$. From this, the probability of producing strange hadron multiplets per event is calculated, thereby enabling the extension of the study of strangeness enhancement to extreme situations where several strange quarks hadronize in a single event at midrapidity. Moreover, comparing hadron combinations with different u and d quark compositions and equal overall s quark content, the contribution to the enhancement pattern coming from non-strangeness related mechanisms is isolated. The results are compared with state-of-the-art phenomenological models implemented in commonly used Monte Carlo event generators, including PYTHIA 8 Monash 2013, PYTHIA 8 with QCD-based Color Reconnection and Rope Hadronization (QCD-CR + Ropes), and EPOS LHC, which incorporates both partonic interactions and hydrodynamic evolution. These comparisons show that the new approach dramatically enhances the sensitivity to the different underlying physics mechanisms modeled by each generator.

Abualrob, I J↗

DOE OSTI2024

The 3D Lyman- α forest power spectrum from eBOSS DR16

We measure the three-dimensional power spectrum (P3D) of the transmitted flux in the Lyman-α (Ly α) forest using the complete extended Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey data release 16 (eBOSS DR16). This sample consists of ~205 000 quasar spectra in the redshift range 2 ≤ z ≤ 4 at an effective redshift z = 2.334. We propose a pair-count spectral estimator in configuration space, weighting each pair by exp( i k ∙ r), for wave vector k and pixel pair separation r, effectively measuring the anisotropic power spectrum without the need for fast Fourier transforms. This accounts for the window matrix in a tractable way, avoiding artefacts found in Fourier-transform based power spectrum estimators due to the sparse sampling transverse to the line of sight of Ly α skewers. We extensively test our pipeline on two sets of mocks: (i) idealized Gaussian random fields with a sparse sampling of Ly α skewers, and (ii) log-normal LyaCoLoRe mocks including realistic noise levels, the eBOSS survey geometry and contaminants. On eBOSS DR16 data, the Kaiser formula with a non-linear correction term obtained from hydrodynamic simulations yields a good fit to the power spectrum data in the range $(0.02 ≤ k ≤ 0.35)$ h Mpc -1 at the 1–2σ level with a covariance matrix derived from LyaCoLoRe mocks. We demonstrate a promising new approach for full-shape cosmological analyses of Ly α forest data from cosmological surveys such as eBOSS, the currently observing Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument and future surveys such as the Prime Focus Spectrograph, WEAVE-QSO, and 4MOST.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Merger Response of Halo Anisotropy Properties

Anisotropy properties—halo spin, shape, position offset, velocity offset, and orientation—are an important family of dark matter halo properties that indicate the level of directional variation of the internal structures of halos. These properties reflect the dynamical state of halos, which in turn depends on the mass assembly history. In this work, we study the evolution of anisotropy properties in response to merger activity using the IllustrisTNG simulations. We find that the response trajectories of the anisotropy properties significantly deviate from secular evolution. These trajectories have the same qualitative features and timescales across a wide range of merger and host properties. We propose explanations for the behavior of these properties and connect their evolution to the relevant stages of merger dynamics. We measure the relevant dynamical timescales. We also explore the dependence of the strength of the response on time of merger, merger ratio, and mass of the main halo. These results provide insight into the physics of halo mergers and their effects on the statistical behavior of halo properties. This study paves the way toward a physical understanding of scaling relations, particularly to how systematics in their scatter are connected to the mass assembly histories of halos.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Galaxy cluster profiles: a Gaussian mixture model approach to halo miscentering

Measurements of the galaxy density and weak-lensing profiles of galaxy clusters typically rely on an assumed cluster center, which is taken to be the brightest cluster galaxy or other proxies for the true halo center defined as the minimum in the potential well. Departure of the assumed cluster center from the true halo center bias the resultant profile measurements, an effect known as miscentering bias. Currently, miscentering is typically modeled in stacked profiles of clusters with a two parameter model. We use an alternate approach in which the profiles of individual clusters are used with the corresponding likelihood computed using a Gaussian mixture model. We test the approach using halos and the corresponding subhalo profiles from the IllustrisTNG hydrodynamic simulations. We obtain significantly improved estimates of the miscentering parameters for both 3D and projected 2D profiles relevant for imaging surveys. We discuss applications to upcoming cosmological surveys. Our Python package for the Gaussian mixture model is publicly available at https://github.com/KyleMiller1/Halo-Miscentering-Mixture-Model.

Bayesian reasoning↗

DOE OSTI2025

Gas and dust dynamics in γ Cephei-type disks

Context. Giant planets are observed orbiting the primary stars of close binary systems. Such planets may have formed in compact circumprimary disks, which once surrounded these stars, under conditions much different than those encountered around single stars. Aims. In order to quantify the effects of the strong gravitational perturbations exerted on circumprimary disk material, the three-dimensional (3D) dynamics of gas and dust in orbit around the primary star of a compact and eccentric binary system was modeled by applying the stellar and orbital parameters of γ Cephei, a well-known system that can be representative of a class of close binaries. Methods. Circumprimary gas was approximated as an Eulerian viscous and compressible fluid and modeled by means of 3D hydrodynamical simulations, assuming locally isothermal conditions in the medium around the primary star. Dust grains were modeled as Lagrangean particles, subjected to gravity and aerodynamic drag forces. Models that include a giant planet were also considered. Results. Models indicate that spiral density waves excited around pericenter passage propagate toward the inner boundary of the disk, through at least a few pressure scale-heights from the mid-plane, inducing radial and vertical mixing in the gas. However, perturbations imparted to gas, both in terms of eccentricity and precession, are far weaker than previously estimated by two-dimensional (2D) simulations. Models predict small eccentricities, ≲0.03, and slow retrograde precession. The addition of a giant planet does not change the low eccentricity state of the disk. The parameters applied to the disk would lead to the formation of a massive planet, many times the mass of Jupiter, in agreement with some observations. Micron to mm-size dust grains are well coupled to the gas, resulting in similar dynamics and statistically similar distributions of orbital elements. The planet only affects the dust distributions locally. In agreement with outcomes of recent 2D models, the lifetime of an isolated circumprimary disk would be brief, ~10 5 years, because of its compact nature, requiring a long-term external supply of mass to allow for the in situ formation of a giant planet.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

NASA NTRS2015

Turbulent Concentration of mm-Size Particles in the Protoplanetary Nebula: Scale-Dependent Cascades

The initial accretion of primitive bodies (here, asteroids in particular) from freely-floating nebula particles remains problematic. Traditional growth-by-sticking models encounter a formidable "meter-size barrier" (or even a mm-to-cm-size barrier) in turbulent nebulae, making the preconditions for so-called "streaming instabilities" difficult to achieve even for so-called "lucky" particles. Even if growth by sticking could somehow breach the meter size barrier, turbulent nebulae present further obstacles through the 1-10km size range. On the other hand, nonturbulent nebulae form large asteroids too quickly to explain long spreads in formation times, or the dearth of melted asteroids. Theoretical understanding of nebula turbulence is itself in flux; recent models of MRI (magnetically-driven) turbulence favor low-or- no-turbulence environments, but purely hydrodynamic turbulence is making a comeback, with two recently discovered mechanisms generating robust turbulence which do not rely on magnetic fields at all. An important clue regarding planetesimal formation is an apparent 100km diameter peak in the pre-depletion, pre-erosion mass distribution of asteroids; scenarios leading directly from independent nebula particulates to large objects of this size, which avoid the problematic m-km size range, could be called "leapfrog" scenarios. The leapfrog scenario we have studied in detail involves formation of dense clumps of aerodynamically selected, typically mm-size particles in turbulence, which can under certain conditions shrink inexorably on 100-1000 orbit timescales and form 10-100km diameter sandpile planetesimals. There is evidence that at least the ordinary chondrite parent bodies were initially composed entirely of a homogeneous mix of such particles. Thus, while they are arcane, turbulent concentration models acting directly on chondrule size particles are worthy of deeper study. The typical sizes of planetesimals and the rate of their formation can be estimated using a statistical model with properties inferred from large numerical simulations of turbulence. Nebula turbulence is described by its Reynolds number Re = (L/eta)(exp 4/3), where L = H alpha(exp 1/2) is the largest eddy scale, H is the nebula gas vertical scale height, alpha the turbulent viscosity parameter, and eta is the Kolmogorov or smallest scale in turbulence (typically about 1km), with eddy turnover time t(sub eta). In the nebula, Re is far larger than any numerical simulation can handle, so some physical arguments are needed to extend the results of numerical simulations to nebula conditions. In this paper, we report new physics to be incorporated into our statistical models.

mm-size particles↗

NASA NTRS1995

The second-moment climatology of the GATE rain rate data

The first part of this paper presents the description of the GARP (Global Atmospheric Research Program) Atlantic Tropical Experiment (GATE) 1 rain-rate data and its two-dimensional spectral and correlation characteristics, which has made it possible to accomplish the following: to show the concentration of a significant power along the frequency axis in the spatiotemporal spectra; to detect a diurnal cycle (which has a range of variation of about 3.4-5.4 mm/n) as one of the sources of bias in the rain statistics of satellite data; to study the distinction between the north-south and east-west transport of spatial rain-rate field and character of its anisotropy; to evaluate the scales of the distinction between second-moment estimates associated with ground and satellite samples; and to determine the appropriate spatial and temporal scales of simple linear stochastic models fitted to averaged rain-rate fields. The second part of this paper is devoted to an analysis of the diffusion of the rain rate by establishing a relationship between the parameters of the multivariate autoregressive model and the coefficients of a diffusion equation. This analysis led to the use of rain data to estimate the rain advection velocity as well as other coefficients of the diffusion equation of the corresponding field. The results obtained can be used for comparison with corresponding estimates of other sources of data (satellite, Tropical Oceans Global Atmosphere Coupled Ocean - Atmosphere Response Experiment (TOGA, COARE) or simulated by physical models), for generating multiple samples of any size, for solving the inverse problems of some of the hydrodynamic equations, and in some other areas of rain data analysis and modeling.

Polyak, Ilya↗

NASA NTRS1997

Global MHD Simulation of Mesoscale Structures at the Magnetospheric Boundary

We have continued our modeling of the solar wind/magnetosphere interaction for steady solar Wind conditions by carrying out a series of 3 D global magneto-hydrodynamics (MHD) simulations using a set of predetermined solar wind parameters as input to the code. With the results from the simulations that we ran last year for two other dipole tilts (0 and 35 deg), we have 36 data sets to study the dynamics of mesoscale structures at the magnetospheric boundary. We have started the analysis of these runs to investigate geometrical properties and the topology of the magnetic and electric fields for the different solar wind regimes and orientations considered. Preliminary results indicate that merging sites are consistent with patterns proposed for antiparallel merging at the dayside magnetopause. Another goal of this investigation is to establish the displacement of the cusp region as a function of the solar wind dynamic pressure, IMF direction and magnetic field dipole tilt. One of the difficulties of that study is to locate precisely the cusp in the simulation results. We have used several case studies to establish a series of criteria in to permit a routine identification of that location. We need now to process the rest of the simulation results using these criteria to obtain statistical results.

Berchem, Jean↗

DOE OSTI2026

Monitored Fluctuating Hydrodynamics

We introduce a hydrodynamic framework for describing monitored classical stochastic processes. We study the conditional ensembles for these monitored processes—i.e., we compute spacetime correlation functions conditioned on a fixed, typical measurement record. In the presence of global symmetries we show that these conditional ensembles can undergo measurement-induced “sharpening” phase transitions as a function of the monitoring rate; moreover, even weak monitoring can give rise to novel critical phases, derived entirely from a classical perspective. We give a simple hydrodynamic derivation of the known “charge-fuzzy phase” for weakly monitored diffusive many-body quantum systems. We show that although the unmonitored symmetric and asymmetric exclusion processes are in different universality classes of transport, the fluctuations in their conditional ensembles flow to the same fixed point with emergent relativistic invariance under monitoring. On the other hand, weakly monitored systems with non-Abelian symmetries enter a novel strongly coupled fixed point with nontrivial dynamical exponent, which we characterize. Our formalism naturally accounts for monitoring general observables, such as currents or density gradients, and allows for a direct calculation of information-theoretic diagnostics of sharpening transitions, including the Shannon entropy of the measurement record.

classical statistical mechanics↗

DOE OSTI2025

2024 Results for Avian Monitoring at the Technical Area 36 Minie Site, Technical Area 39 Point 6, Technical Area 16 Burn Ground, and DARHT at Los Alamos National Laboratory

Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) biological subject matter experts in the Environmental Protection and Compliance Division initiated a multi-year program in 2013 to monitor avifauna (birds) at two open detonation sites and one open burn site on LANL property. Additional monitoring began in 2017 at a third firing site, the Dual-Axis Radiographic Hydrodynamic Test (DARHT) Facility. In this annual report, we compare monitoring results from these efforts among years to identify and evaluate firing and open burn site impacts on the local bird community. The objectives of this study are • to determine whether LANL operations impact bird abundance, species richness, or diversity; • to examine occupancy and nest success of secondary-cavity nesting birds that use nest boxes; and • to examine chemical concentrations (such as radionuclides, inorganic elements, and/or organic compounds) in nonviable eggs and deceased nestlings that are collected opportunistically with the upper-level bounds of background concentrations, when available. During May through July 2024, LANL biologists completed multiple avian point count surveys at each of the following treatment sites: • Technical Area (TA) 36 Minie Site, • TA-39 Point 6, • TA-16 Burn Ground, and • DARHT. We recorded a total of 1,088 birds that represented 65 species at the four treatment sites and compared these results with data from their associated control sites. In 2024, abundance and species richness at treatment and control sites continued to trend similarly from year to year, with minor random deviations expected from bird communities. Species richness at firing sites differed little from the previous year’s values. Two new bird species were observed at the firing sites—cedar waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) and pinyon jay (Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus). Shannon diversity values at TA-36 Minie Site, TA-39, and DARHT were statistically higher than one or more of their associated controls. Annual species diversity at treatment sites was high in 2024 across all firing sites relative to similar habitat control sites. We also monitored avian nest boxes to compare occupancy and nest success data from nest boxes at treatment sites with the overall avian nest box monitoring network and against a subset of relevant control sites. Nest box success has decreased at both treatment and control sites since monitoring began, suggesting that overlapping climatic factors are responsible for patterns of declining nest success. In 2024, nonviable avian eggs and one nestling were opportunistically collected at Bandelier National Monument, TA-16 Burn Ground, TA-36 Minie, TA-39 Point 6, and DARHT. All egg samples and the one nestling sample were evaluated for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, which were detected from all locations, including the control site at Bandelier National Monument. Overall results from 2024 continue to suggest that operations at the four treatment sites are not negatively impacting bird populations. This long-term project will continue to monitor for any changes over time.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

DOE OSTI2026

Molecular dynamics simulation of hydrodynamic transport coefficients in plasmas

Molecular dynamics simulations are used to calculate transport coefficients in a two-component plasma interacting through a repulsive Coulomb potential. The thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity, electrothermal coefficient, thermoelectric coefficient, and shear viscosity are computed using the Green–Kubo formalism over a broad range of Coulomb coupling strength, 0.01 ≤ Γ ≤ 140. Emphasis is placed on testing standard results of the Chapman–Enskog solution in the weakly coupled regime (Γ ≪ 1) using these first-principles simulations. As expected, the results show good agreement for Γ ≲ 0.1. However, this agreement is only possible if careful attention is paid to the definitions of linear constitutive relations in each of the theoretical models, a point that is often overlooked. For example, the standard Green–Kubo expression for thermal conductivity is a linear combination of thermal conductivity, electrothermal, and thermoelectric coefficients computed in the Chapman–Enskog formalism. Meaningful results for electrical conductivity are obtained over the full range of coupling strengths explored, but it is shown that potential and virial components of the other transport coefficients diverge in the strongly coupled regime (Γ ≫ 1). In this regime, only the kinetic components of the transport coefficients are meaningful for a classical plasma.

Electrical conductivity↗

NASA NTRS2000

Inertial Effects in Suspension Dynamics

The present work analyses the dynamics of a suspension of heavy particles in shear flow. The magnitude of the particle inertia is given by the Stokes number St = m(gamma/6(pi)a, which is the ratio of the viscous relaxation time of a particle tau(sub p) = m=6pi(eta)a to the flow time gamma(sup -1). Here, m is the mass of the particle, a is its size, eta is the viscosity of the suspending fluid and gamma is the shear rate. The ratio of the Stokes number to the Reynolds number, Re = (rho)f(gamma)a(exp 2)/eta, is the density ratio rho(sub p)/rho(sub f). Of interest is to understand the separate roles of particle (St) and fluid (Re) inertia in the dynamics of suspensions. In this study we focus on heavy particles, rho(sub p)/rho(sub f) much greater than 1, for which the Stokes number is finite, but the Reynolds number is sufficiently small for inertial forces in the fluid to be neglected; thus, the fluid motion is governed by the Stokes equations. On the other hand, the probability density governing the statistics of the suspended particles satisfies a Fokker-Planck equation that accounts for both configuration and momentum coordinates, the latter being essential for finite St. The solution of the Fokker-Planck equation is obtained to O(St) via a Chapman-Enskog type-procedure, and the conditional velocity distribution so obtained is used to derive a configuration-space Smoluchowski equation with inertial corrections. The inertial effects are responsible for asymmetry in the relative trajectories of two spheres in shear flow, in contrast to the well known symmetric structure in the absence of inertia. Finite St open trajectories in the plane of shear suffer a downward lateral displacement resulting from the inability of a particle of finite mass to follow the curvature of the zero-Stokes-number pathlines. In addition to the induced asymmetry, the O(St) inertial perturbation dramatically alters the nature of the near-field trajectories. The stable closed orbits (for St = 0) in the plane of shear now spiral in, approaching particle-particle contact in the limit. All trajectories starting from an initial offset of O(St(sup 1/2) or less (which remain open for St = 0) also spiral in. The asymmetry of the trajectories leads to a non-Newtonian rheology and diffusive behavior. The latter because a given particle (moving along a finite St open trajectory) suffers a net displacement in the transverse direction after a single interaction. A sequence of such uncorrelated displacements leads to the particle executing a random walk. The inertial diffusivity tensor is anisotropic on account of differing strengths of interaction in the gradient and vorticity directions. Since the entire region (constituting an in finite area) of closed orbits in the plane of shear spirals onto contact for #finite St, the latter represents a singular surface for the pair-distribution function. The exact form of the pair-distribution function at contact is still, however, indeterminate in the absence of non-hydrodynamic effects. It should also be noted that finite St non-rectilinear flows do not support a spatially uniform number density owing to the cross-streamline inertial migration of particles.

J. F. Brady↗

DOE OSTI2024

Applications of a Rayleigh-Taylor model to direct-drive laser fusion

Here, this paper presents a simple physics-based model for the interpretation of key metrics in laser direct drive. The only input parameters required are target scale, in-flight aspect ratio, and beam-to-target radius, and the importance of each has been quantified with a tailored set of cryogenic implosion experiments. These analyses lead to compact and accurate predictions of the fusion yield and areal density as a function of hydrodynamic stability, and suggest new ways to take advantage of direct drive. To provide examples, we will discuss how the inferred mix width behaves relative to theory, then show how it could be exploited to perform a direct drive implosion with a Lawson metric or Χ no α of 0.24 ± 0.02—using a novel parameter space at high velocities and beam radii on the OMEGA laser—that projects to ignition at a laser energy ≤2.0 MJ.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗