766 research outputs found
Plasma composition in a sigmoidal anemone active region
Using spectra obtained by the EIS instrument onboard Hinode, we present a
detailed spatially resolved abundance map of an active region (AR)-coronal hole
(CH) complex that covers an area of 359 arcsec x 485 arcsec. The abundance map
provides first ionization potential (FIP) bias levels in various coronal
structures within the large EIS field of view. Overall, FIP bias in the small,
relatively young AR is 2-3. This modest FIP bias is a consequence of the AR
age, its weak heating, and its partial reconnection with the surrounding CH.
Plasma with a coronal composition is concentrated at AR loop footpoints, close
to where fractionation is believed to take place in the chromosphere. In the
AR, we found a moderate positive correlation of FIP bias with nonthermal
velocity and magnetic flux density, both of which are also strongest at the AR
loop footpoints. Pathways of slightly enhanced FIP bias are traced along some
of the loops connecting opposite polarities within the AR. We interpret the
traces of enhanced FIP bias along these loops to be the beginning of
fractionated plasma mixing in the loops. Low FIP bias in a sigmoidal channel
above the AR's main polarity inversion line where ongoing flux cancellation is
taking place, provides new evidence of a bald patch magnetic topology of a
sigmoid/flux rope configfiuration.Comment: For on-line animation, see
http://www.mssl.ucl.ac.uk/~db2/fip_intensity.gif. Accepted by Ap
PUPHS2D 2.0 User\u27s Manual
The Purdue University Program for Heterostructure Simulation in Two Dimensions (PUPHS2D) solves Poisson\u27s equation and the electron and hole continuity equations within a two-dimensional heterostructure device. The program will compute the electrostatic potential, electron and hole densities, recombination rate, and other quantities of interest as a function of applied bias. Like its predecessor, version 2.0 allows extensive analysis of solar cells, including computation of the current-voltage characteristics of two-terminal devices, solar cell parameters, quantum efficiency, and current versus solar intensity. Extensions to version 2.Q include transient analysis and bipolar transistor capability. The heterojunction bipolar transistor routines allow computation of dc currents as a function of applied bias, as well as quasi-static evaluation of the high-frequency behavior. A simplified energy balance equation has been added in the interest of more accurately computing high-field characteristics, and should be viewed as a preliminary step toward this goal. PUPHS2D stands as an accurate model for computing low-field device characteristics and recombinative losses. While PUPHS2D was written for the ternary AlxGai1-xAs, all material specific parameters are contained within a single subroutine (BANDX), except for absorption coefficient and carrier mobilities which are computed in subroutines ALGABS and SETMOB, respectively. Material-specific parameters used for the energy balance equation are found in subroutines INITMU and INITAU. The program may be readily modified to analyze other semiconductors. For a more thorough discussion of the theoretical basis and numerical implementation of PUPHS2D, the user is directed to the references. Materials parameters are described in reference [I]. Various phases of the development of PUPHS2D have been supported by the Semiconductor Research Corporation, Sandia National Laboratories/ the Eastman Kodak Company, and by Research Triangle Institute
Coronal magnetic reconnection driven by CME expansion -- the 2011 June 7 event
Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) erupt and expand in a magnetically structured
solar corona. Various indirect observational pieces of evidence have shown that
the magnetic field of CMEs reconnects with surrounding magnetic fields,
forming, e.g., dimming regions distant from the CME source regions. Analyzing
Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) observations of the eruption from AR 11226 on
2011 June 7, we present the first direct evidence of coronal magnetic
reconnection between the fields of two adjacent ARs during a CME. The
observations are presented jointly with a data-constrained numerical
simulation, demonstrating the formation/intensification of current sheets along
a hyperbolic flux tube (HFT) at the interface between the CME and the
neighbouring AR 11227. Reconnection resulted in the formation of new magnetic
connections between the erupting magnetic structure from AR 11226 and the
neighboring active region AR 11227 about 200 Mm from the eruption site. The
onset of reconnection first becomes apparent in the SDO/AIA images when
filament plasma, originally contained within the erupting flux rope, is
re-directed towards remote areas in AR 11227, tracing the change of large-scale
magnetic connectivity. The location of the coronal reconnection region becomes
bright and directly observable at SDO/AIA wavelengths, owing to the presence of
down-flowing cool, dense (10^{10} cm^{-3}) filament plasma in its vicinity. The
high-density plasma around the reconnection region is heated to coronal
temperatures, presumably by slow-mode shocks and Coulomb collisions. These
results provide the first direct observational evidence that CMEs reconnect
with surrounding magnetic structures, leading to a large-scale re-configuration
of the coronal magnetic field.Comment: 12 pages, 12 figure
Final Report: Theory of Advanced High Efficiency Concentrator Cells
The goal of this project was to begin -developing accurate, and ultimately predictive, device models for III-V concentrator cells. The project consisted of extending a one-dimensional numerical device model previously developed at Purdue to III-V solar cells. We also began verifying the accuracy of the code by comparing computed and measured solar cell characteristics. Gallium arsenide was selected because it is the most mature III-V technology and because GaAs solar cells have demonstrated high conversion efficiency [l,2,3]. The present device model should be useful in optimizing GaAs solar cells and forms a foundation that can be extended to other III-V homo- and heterostructure solar cells. The numerical device model developed in this work solves Poisson’s equation simultaneously with the electron and hole continuity equations without making common assumptions such as low-level injection, piece-wise uniform doping, neglect of space-charge recombination, etc. Materials models for GaAs solar cells (e. g. intrinsic carrier concentration, carrier mobilities, lifetimes, optical absorption and reflection coefficients, etc.) were compiled, evaluated, and in some cases extended. These materials models were then implemented into the numerical device model. The device model was also extended to analyze optical absorption and reflection from bare and anti-reflection (AR) coated cells. To test the GaAs cell model, we compared its predictions to measured results for an N+P cell (the shallow homojunction cell reported by Fan and co-workers) and a P+N cell (fabricated by Borrego and co-workers). In general, good agreement between theory and experiment was obtained for both concentrated and unconcentrated conditions. Although detailed comparisons of the model’s predictions with measured results continue, the present model is a useful tool for GaAs cell design and optimization
Basic Studies of III-IV High Efficiency Cell Components
The objective of the project is to raise the understanding of dark current mechanisms in GaAs-related solar cells to a level comparable to that of silicon cells. Motivation for this work arises from the observation that much of the progress in crystalline silicon cell performance has occurred as a result of a very deep knowledge of the physics controlling the cell’s dark current. Based on this knowledge, new cell structures evolved to suppress dominant dark current mechanisms. A comparable level of knowledge of GaAs cell device physics does not yet exist, but will be essential if cell performance near the thermodynamic limit is to be achieved
EUV jets, type III radio bursts and sunspot waves investigated using SDO/AIA observations
Images from the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) at 211A are used to identify
the solar source of the type III radio bursts seen in WIND/WAVES dynamic
spectra. We analyse a 2.5 hour period during which six strong bursts are seen.
The radio bursts correlate very well with the EUV jets coming from the western
side of a sunspot in AR11092. The EUV jet emission also correlates well with
brightening at what looks like their footpoint at the edge of the umbra. For
10-15 min after strong EUV jets are ejected, the footpoint brightens at roughly
3 min intervals. In both the EUV images and the extracted light curves, it
looks as though the brightening is related to the 3-min sunspot oscillations,
although the correlation coefficient is rather low. The only open field near
the jets is rooted in the sunspot. We conclude that active region EUV/X-ray
jets and interplanetary electron streams originate on the edge of the sunspot
umbra. They form along a current sheet between the sunspot open field and
closed field connecting to underlying satellite flux. Sunspot running penumbral
waves cause roughly 3-min jet footpoint brightening. The relationship between
the waves and jets is less clear.Comment: 4 pages, 7 figures, Accepted by A&A Letters. For associated gif
movie, see http://www.mps.mpg.de/data/outgoing/innes/jets/losb_304_211_rd.gi
Can Subphotospheric Magnetic Reconnection Change the Elemental Composition in the Solar Corona?
Within the coronae of stars, abundances of those elements with low first ionization potential (FIP) often differ from their photospheric values. The coronae of the Sun and solar-type stars mostly show enhancements of low-FIP elements (the FIP effect) while more active stars such as M dwarfs have coronae generally characterized by the inverse-FIP effect (I-FIP). Here we observe patches of I-FIP effect solar plasma in AR 12673, a highly complex βγδ active region. We argue that the umbrae of coalescing sunspots, and more specifically strong light bridges within the umbrae, are preferential locations for observing I-FIP effect plasma. Furthermore, the magnetic complexity of the active region and major episodes of fast flux emergence also lead to repetitive and intense flares. The induced evaporation of the chromospheric plasma in flare ribbons crossing umbrae enables the observation of four localized patches of I-FIP effect plasma in the corona of AR 12673. These observations can be interpreted in the context of the ponderomotive force fractionation model which predicts that plasma with I-FIP effect composition is created by the refraction of waves coming from below the chromosphere. We propose that the waves generating the I-FIP effect plasma in solar active regions are generated by subphotospheric reconnection of coalescing flux systems. Although we only glimpse signatures of I-FIP effect fractionation produced by this interaction in patches on the Sun, on highly active M stars it may be the dominant process
Tracking Solar Active Region Outflow Plasma from its Source to the near-Earth Environment
Seeking to establish whether active region upflow material contributes to the
slow solar wind, we examine in detail the plasma upflows from Active Region
(AR)10978, which crossed the Sun's disc in the interval 8 to 16 December, 2007
during Carrington rotation (CR)2064. In previous work, using data from the
Hinode/EUV Imaging Spectrometer, upflow velocity evolution was extensively
studied as the region crossed the disc while a linear force-free magnetic
extrapolation was used to confirm aspects of the velocity evolution and to
establish the presence of quasi-separatrix layers at the upflow source areas.
The plasma properties, temperature, density and first ionisation potential bias
(FIP-bias) were measured with the spectrometer during the disc passage of the
active region. Global potential field source surface (PFSS) models showed that
AR 10978 was completely covered by the closed field of a helmet streamer that
is part of the streamer belt. Thus it is not clear how any of the upflowing
AR-associated plasma could reach the source surface at 2.5 R(Sun)and contribute
to the slow solar wind. However a detailed examination of solar-wind in-situ
data obtained by the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) spacecraft at the L1
point shows that the increase in O^7+/O^6+, C^6+/C^5+ and Fe/O - a FIP-bias
proxy - are present before the heliospheric current sheet crossing. These
increases, along with an accompanying reduction in proton velocity and an
increase in density are characteristic of both AR and slow-wind plasma. Finally
we describe a two-step reconnection process by which some of the upflowing
plasma from the AR could reach the heliosphere
Back contacted emitter GaAs solar cells
A new device structure to improve the performance of concentrator GaAs solar cells is described and the first experimental results are reported. The reason for such an improvement relies on a drastic reduction of the shadowing and series resistance losses based on the possibility of back contacting the emitter region of the solar cell. The experimental results obtained with devices of these types, with a simplified structure, fabricated by liquid phase epitaxy, demonstrate the feasibility and correct operation of the proposed back contact of the emitter of the cells
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