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At least 163 records · Page 9

Shocked relativistic magnetohydrodynamic flows with application to pulsar winds

The time-dependent behavior of a shocked spherically symmetric relativistic fluid with tangential magnetic field is investigated, considering the case where the boundaries of the shocked fluid move at constant velocity so that self-similar solutions exist. The behavior of the fluid in the ultrarelativistic regime is compared to that in the nonrelativistic regime; there is a smooth transition between these limits. If a magnetic field is present, the magnetic pressure becomes increasingly important with distance from the shock wave; the gas pressure vanishes at the contact discontinuity that bounds the flow. Analytic expressions are given which describe the flow. The solutions can be applied to the evolution of shocked relativistic pulsar winds, which are probably observed as Crab-like supernova remnants. A model for the Crab Nebula, based on the steady-state model of Kennel and Coroniti (1984), indicates that sigma = 0.0016, where sigma is twice the ratio of magnetic to particle energy in the wind as measured in the fluid frame. This is about half the value suggested by Kennel and Coroniti and is much smaller than the value that might be expected for a pulsar wind.

Emmering, Robert T.↗

Magnetic Control of Concentration Gradient in Microgravity

A report describes a technique for rapidly establishing a fluid-concentration gradient that can serve as an initial condition for an experiment on solutal instabilities associated with crystal growth in microgravity. The technique involves exploitation of the slight attractive or repulsive forces exerted on most fluids by a magnetic-field gradient. Although small, these forces can dominate in microgravity and therefore can be used to hold fluids in position in preparation for an experiment. The magnetic field is applied to a test cell, while a fluid mixture containing a concentration gradient is prepared by introducing an undiluted solution into a diluting solution in a mixing chamber. The test cell is then filled with the fluid mixture. Given the magnetic susceptibilities of the undiluted and diluting solutions, the magnetic-field gradient must be large enough that the magnetic force exceeds both (1) forces associated with the flow of the fluid mixture during filling of the test cell and (2) forces imposed by any residual gravitation and fluctuations thereof. Once the test cell has been filled with the fluid mixture, the magnetic field is switched off so that the experiment can proceed, starting from the proper initial conditions.

Leslie, Fred↗

Orbital Inverse Faraday and Cotton-Mouton Effects in Hall Fluids

We report two light-induced orbital magnetization effects in quantum Hall (QH) fluids, stemming from their transverse response. The first is a purely transverse contribution to the inverse Faraday effect (IFE), where circularly polarized light induces a dc magnetization by stirring the charged fluid. This contribution dominates the IFE in the QH regime. The second is the orbital inverse Cotton-Mouton effect (ICME), in which linearly polarized light generates a dc magnetization. Since the applied field in the ICME does not break time-reversal symmetry, the induced magnetization directly probes the chiral orbital response of the fluid at the driving frequency. We estimate that the resulting magnetization lies in the range of 0.5–10 Bohr magnetons per charge carrier in materials such as graphene and transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) in the QH regime. Finally, we show that the induced magnetization is accompanied by a local correction to the static particle density, enabling optical quantum printing of density profiles into the QH fluid.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Two-fluid model of rf current condensation in magnetic islands

The stabilization of tearing modes with rf waves is subject to a nonlinear effect, termed rf current condensation, that has the potential to greatly enhance and localize current driven within magnetic islands. Here we extend previous investigations of this effect with a two fluid model that captures the balance of diffusive and thermal equilibration processes within the island. We show that the effective power and resulting strength of the condensation effect can be greatly enhanced by avoiding collisional heat loss to the ions. The relative impact of collisions on the overall power balance within the island depends on the ratio of the characteristic diffusion timescale and the electron–ion equilibration time, rather than the latter alone. Although relative heat loss to ions increases with island size, the heating efficiency does as well. In particular, we show that the latter safely dominates for large deposition profiles, as is typically the case for lower hybrid current drive. This supports the possibility of passive stabilization of neoclassical tearing modes without the precise aiming of the rf waves required for electron cyclotron current drive stabilization.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Multi-Fluid and Kinetic Models of Partially Ionized Magnetic Reconnection

Magnetic reconnection in partially ionized plasmas is a ubiquitous and important phenomena in both laboratory and astrophysical systems. Here, simulations of partially ionized magnetic reconnection with well-matched initial conditions are performed using both multi-fluid and fully-kinetic approaches. Despite similar initial conditions, the time-dependent evolution differs between the two models. In multi-fluid models, the reconnection rate locally obeys either a decoupled Sweet-Parker scaling, where neutrals are unimportant, or a fully coupled Sweet-Parker scaling, where neutrals and ions are strongly coupled, depending on the resistivity. In contrast, kinetic models show a faster reconnection rate that is proportional to the fully-coupled, bulk Alfv\'en speed, $v_A^\star$. These differences are interpreted as the result of operating in different collisional regimes. Multi-fluid simulations are found to maintain $\nu_{ni}L/v_A^\star \gtrsim 1$, where $\nu_{ni}$ is the neutral-ion collision frequency and $L$ is the time-dependent current sheet half-length. This strongly couples neutrals to the reconnection outflow, while kinetic simulations evolve to allow $\nu_{ni}L/v_A^\star < 1$, decoupling neutrals from the reconnection outflow. Differences in the way reconnection is triggered may explain these discrepancies.

Magnetic reconnection↗

Fluid Flow and Solidification Under Combined Action of Magnetic Fields and Microgravity

Mathematical models, both 2-D and 3-D, are developed to represent g-jitter induced fluid flows and their effects on solidification under combined action of magnetic fields and microgravity. The numerical model development is based on the finite element solution of governing equations describing the transient g-jitter driven fluid flows, heat transfer and solutal transport during crystal growth with and without an applied magnetic field in space vehicles. To validate the model predictions, a ground-based g-jitter simulator is developed using the oscillating wall temperatures where timely oscillating fluid flows are measured using a laser PIV system. The measurements are compared well with numerical results obtained from the numerical models. Results show that a combined action derived from magnetic damping and microgravity can be an effective means to control the melt flow and solutal transport in space single crystal growth systems.

Li, B. Q.↗

Convection and magnetic fields in an atmosphere with constant temperature gradient. I - Hydrodynamic flows

In order to deduce the fluid and field conditions deep in the supergranules from the fluid motions and magnetic fields observed in the solar photosphere, it is necessary to have some idea of the depth to which the supergranules extend and the form of their internal fluid velocities. Toward this end a number of analytic solutions of the Navier-Stokes equations are given for circumstances possessing various facets of the supergranule environment in the sun. These solutions, together with the earlier work by others, shows that the granules extend to depths in excess of their mean diameters, that the convective velocities probably do not diminish much, if any, with depth, and that across the tops of the supergranules at the photosphere the horizontal velocity is more or less independent of depth.

Parker, E. N.↗

Time-dependent relaxed magnetohydrodynamics: Inclusion of cross helicity constraint using phase-space action

In this work, a phase-space version of the ideal magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) Lagrangian is derived from first principles and shown to give a relabeling transformation when a cross-helicity constraint is added in Hamilton's Action Principle. A new formulation of time-dependent “relaxed” magnetohydrodynamics is derived using microscopic conservation of mass and macroscopic constraints on total magnetic helicity, cross helicity, and entropy under variations of density, pressure, fluid velocity, and magnetic vector potential. This gives Euler–Lagrange equations consistent with previous work on both ideal and relaxed MHD equilibria with flow, but generalizes the relaxation concept from statics to dynamics. The application of the new dynamical formalism is illustrated for short-wavelength linear waves, and the interface connection conditions for Multiregion Relaxed MHD (MRxMHD) are derived. The issue of whether E+u×B=0 should be a constraint is discussed.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Numerical solution for propagation of coupled longitudinal and transverse waves normal to the applied magnetic field in a three-fluid medium.

The solution was obtained without approximating the dispersion relation. This was made possible by the use of a computer method for carrying out the extremely large number of algebraic manipulations involved. The three-fluid model employed accounts for the interaction of the electron, ion, and neutral species. The solution for the e-folding distance describes the damping characteristics of each wave mode. Each of the e-folding solutions corresponds to one of the phase velocity solutions.

Mcclendon, R. W.↗

Ion streaming instabilities with application to collisionless shock wave structure

The electromagnetic dispersion relation for two counterstreaming ion beams of arbitrary relative strength flowing parallel to a dc magnetic field is derived. The beams flow through a stationary electron background and the dispersion relation in the fluid approximation is unaffected by the electron thermal pressure. Magnetic effects on the ion beams are included, but the electrons are treated as a magnetized fluid. The dispersion relation is solved with a zero net current condition applied and the regions of instability in the k-U space (U is the relative velocity between the two ion beams) are presented. These results are extensions of Kovner's analysis for weak beams. The parameters are then chosen to be applicable for parallel shocks. It is found that unstable waves with zero group velocity in the shock frame can exist near the leading edge of the shock for upstream Alfven Mach numbers greater than 5.5.

Golden, K. I.↗

Particle Acceleration during Magnetic Reconnection in Solar Flares and Its Parameter Dependence [Slide]

We performed 3D hybrid simulations (particle ions and fluid electrons) of magnetic reconnection and we have achieved, for the first time, nonthermal acceleration of all ion species (up to Iron) into power-law energy spectra. The spectra have a scaling of maximum energy per nucleon as a function of species consistent with satellite observations by NASA’s Parker Solar Probe mission.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

Miniature high speed compressor having embedded permanent magnet motor

A high speed centrifugal compressor for compressing fluids includes a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) having a hollow shaft, the being supported on its ends by ball bearing supports. A permanent magnet core is embedded inside the shaft. A stator with a winding is located radially outward of the shaft. The PMSM includes a rotor including at least one impeller secured to the shaft or integrated with the shaft as a single piece. The rotor is a high rigidity rotor providing a bending mode speed of at least 100,000 RPM which advantageously permits implementation of relatively low-cost ball bearing supports.

Zhou, Lei↗

A self-consistent two-dimensional resistive fluid theory of field-aligned potential structures including charge separation and magnetic and velocity shear

A self-consistent two-fluid theory that includes the magnetic field and shear patterns is developed to model stationary electrostatic structures with field-aligned potential drops. Shear flow is also included in the theory since this seems to be a prominent feature of the structures of interest. In addition, Ohmic dissipation, a Hall term, and pressure gradients in a generalized Ohm's law, modified for cases without quasi-neutrality, are included. In the analytic theory, the electrostatic force is balanced by field-aligned pressure gradients (i.e., thermal effects in the direction of the magnetic field) and by pressure gradients and magnetic stresses in the perpendicular direction. Within this theory, simple examples of applications are presented to demonstrate the kind of solutions resulting from the model. The results show how the effects of charge separation and shear in the magnetic field and the velocity can be combined to form self-consistent structures such as are found to exist above the aurora, suggested also in association with solar flares.

Hesse, Michael↗

MCZ: Striations in CZ silicon crystals grown under various axial magnetic field strengths

Suppression of fluid flow instabilities in the melt by the axial magnetic field in Czochralski silicon crystal growth (AMCZ) is investigated precisely by a high-sensitivity striation etching in conjunction with temperature measurements. The magnetic strength (B) was varied up to 4.0 kG, incremented in 0.5 kG/5 cm crystal length. The convection flow was substantially suppressed at B 1.0 kG. A low oxygen level of 2-3 ppma and a high resistivity of 400 ohm-cm is achieved in the AMCZ silicon crystals at B 1.0 kG. Details of the striation formation as a function of B are presented. Computer simulation of the magnetohydrodynamics of the AMCZ silicon crystal growth are discussed briefly with regard to the solute, especially oxygen segregation at B=0, 1.0, and 2.0 kG. Earlier studies in the inverted Bridgman growth of InSb and Ge, which have established the cause and effect relationship between the convection in the melt and the striation formation as well as the suppression of the convections in the melt by transverse magnetic field are reviewed.

Kim, G. K. M.↗

Energy and momentum flow in electromagnetic fields and plasma

The energy momentum tensor for a perfect fluid in a magnetic field is used to predict the momentum density, energy density, momentum flow, and energy flow of the fluid and the electromagnetic field. It is shown that taking the momentum flow from the energy momentum tensor, rather than starting with differential magnetohydrodynamic equations, can produce more accurate results on the basis of magnetic field data. It is suggested that the use of the energy momentum tensor has the potential for application to analysis of data from the more dynamic regions of the solar system, such as the plasma boundaries of Venus, the Jovian ionosphere, and the terrestrial magnetopause.

Parish, J. L.↗