19,727 research outputs found
Statistical model for intermittent plasma edge turbulence
The Probability Distribution Function of plasma density fluctuations at the
edge of fusion devices is known to be skewed and strongly non-Gaussian. The
causes of this peculiar behaviour are, up to now, largely unexplored. On the
other hand, understanding the origin and the properties of edge turbulence is a
key issue in magnetic fusion research. In this work we show that a stochastic
fragmentation model, already successfully applied to fluid turbulence, is able
to predict an asymmetric distribution that closely matches experimental data.
The asymmetry is found to be a direct consequence of intermittency. A
discussion of our results in terms of recently suggested BHP universal curve
[S.T. Bramwell, P.C.W. Holdsworth, J.-F. Pinton, Nature (London) 396, 552
(1998)], that should hold for strongly correlated and critical systems, is also
proposedComment: 13 pages. Physica Review E, accepte
Flexible high-voltage supply for experimental electron microscope
Scanning microscope uses a field-emission tip for the electron source, an electron gun that simultaneously accelerates and focuses electrons from the source, and one auxiliary lens to produce a final probe size at the specimen on the order of angstroms
Modelling an isolated dust grain in a plasma using matched asymptotic expansions
The study of dusty plasmas is of significant practical use and scientific interest. A characteristic feature of dust grains in a plasma is that they are typically smaller than the electron Debye distance, a property which we exploit using the technique of matched asymptotic expansions. We first consider the case of a spherical dust particle in a stationary plasma, employing the AllenâBoydâReynolds theory, which assumes cold, collisionless ions. We derive analytical expressions for the electric potential, the ion number density and ion velocity. This requires only one computation that is not specific to a single set of dustâplasma parameters, and sheds new light on the shielding distance of a dust grain. The extension of this calculation to the case of uniform ion streaming past the dust grain, a scenario of interest in many dusty plasmas, is less straightforward. For streaming below a certain threshold we again establish asymptotic solutions but above the streaming threshold there appears to be a fundamental change in the behaviour of the system
Population pressure and global markets drive a decade of forest cover change in Africa\u27s Albertine Rift
Africa\u27s Albertine Rift region faces a juxtaposition of rapid human population growth and protected areas, making it one of the world\u27s most vulnerable biodiversity hotspots. Using satellite-derived estimates of forest cover change, we examined national socioeconomic, demographic, agricultural production, and local demographic and geographic variables, to assess multilevel forces driving local forest cover loss and gain outside protected areas during the first decade of this century. Because the processes that drive forest cover loss and gain are expected to be different, and both are of interest, we constructed models of significant change in each direction. Although rates of forest cover change varied by country, national population change was the strongest driver of forest loss for all countries â with a population doubling predicted to cause 2.06% annual cover loss, while doubling tea production predicted to cause 1.90%. The rate of forest cover gain was associated positively with increased production of the local staple crop cassava, but negatively with local population density and meat production, suggesting production drivers at multiple levels affect reforestation. We found a small but significant decrease in loss rate as distance from protected areas increased, supporting studies suggesting higher rates of landscape change near protected areas. While local population density mitigated the rate of forest cover gain, loss was also correlated with lower local population density, an apparent paradox, but consistent with findings that larger scale forces outweigh local drivers of deforestation. This implicates demographic and market forces at national and international scales as critical drivers of change, calling into question the necessary scales of forest protection policy in this biodiversity hotspot. Using a satellite derived estimate of forest cover change for both loss and gain added a dynamic component to more traditionally static and unidirectional studies, significantly improving our understanding of landscape processes and drivers at work
Plate-impact loading of cellular structures formed by selective laser melting
Porous materials are of great interest because of improved energy absorption over their solid counterparts. Their properties, however, have been difficult to optimize. Additive manufacturing has emerged as a potential technique to closely define the structure and properties of porous components, i.e. density, strut width and pore size; however, the behaviour of these materials at very high impact energies remains largely unexplored. We describe an initial study of the dynamic compression response of lattice materials fabricated through additive manufacturing. Lattices consisting of an array of intersecting stainless steel rods were fabricated into discs using selective laser melting. The resulting discs were impacted against solid stainless steel targets at velocities ranging from 300 to 700 m s-1 using a gas gun. Continuum CTH simulations were performed to identify key features in the measured wave profiles, while 3D simulations, in which the individual cells were modelled, revealed details of microscale deformation during collapse of the lattice structure. The validated computer models have been used to provide an understanding of the deformation processes in the cellular samples. The study supports the optimization of cellular structures for application as energy absorbers. © 2014 IOP Publishing Ltd
Magnetic Field Structure around Low-Mass Class 0 Protostars: B335, L1527 and IC348-SMM2
We report new 350 micron polarization observations of the thermal dust
emission from the cores surrounding the low-mass, Class 0 YSOs L1527,
IC348-SMM2 and B335. We have inferred magnetic field directions from these
observations, and have used them together with results in the literature to
determine whether magnetically regulated core-collapse and star-formation
models are consistent with the observations. These models predict a pseudo-disk
with its symmetry axis aligned with the core magnetic field. The models also
predict a magnetic field pinch structure on a scale less than or comparable to
the infall radii for these sources. In addition, if the core magnetic field
aligns (or nearly aligns) the core rotation axis with the magnetic field before
core collapse, then the models predict the alignment (or near alignment) of the
overall pinch field structure with the bipolar outflows in these sources. We
show that if one includes the distorting effects of bipolar outflows on
magnetic fields, then in general the observational results for L1527 and
IC348-SMM2 are consistent with these magnetically regulated models. We can say
the same for B335 only if we assume the distorting effects of the bipolar
outflow on the magnetic fields within the B335 core are much greater than for
L1527 and IC348-SMM2. We show that the energy densities of the outflows in all
three sources are large enough to distort the magnetic fields predicted by
magnetically regulated models.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa
Reproducible aspects of the climate of space weather over the last five solar cycles
Each solar maximum interval has a different duration and peak activity level which is reflected in the behaviour of key physical variables that characterize solar and solar wind driving and magnetospheric response. The variation in the statistical distributions of the F10.7 index of solar coronal radio emissions, the dynamic pressure PDyn and effective convection electric field Ey in the solar wind observed in situ upstream of Earth, the ring current index DST, and the high latitude auroral activity index AE, are tracked across the last five solar maxima. For each physical variable we find that the distribution tail (the exceedences above a threshold) can be rescaled onto a single master distribution using the mean and variance specific to each solar maximum interval. We provide Generalized Pareto Distribution fits to the different master distributions for each of the variables. If the mean and variance of the largeâto extreme observations can be predicted for a given solar maximum then their full distribution is known
Transport Equations from Liouville Equations for Fractional Systems
We consider dynamical systems that are described by fractional power of
coordinates and momenta. The fractional powers can be considered as a
convenient way to describe systems in the fractional dimension space. For the
usual space the fractional systems are non-Hamiltonian. Generalized transport
equation is derived from Liouville and Bogoliubov equations for fractional
systems. Fractional generalization of average values and reduced distribution
functions are defined. Hydrodynamic equations for fractional systems are
derived from the generalized transport equation.Comment: 11 pages, LaTe
The dependence of solar wind burst size on burst duration and its invariance across solar cycles 23 and 24
Time series of solar wind variables are âburstyâ in nature. Bursts, or excursions, in the time series of solar wind parameters are associated with various transient structures in the solar wind plasma, and are often the drivers of increased space weather activity in Earth's magnetosphere. We define bursts by setting a threshold value of the time series and identifying how often, and for how long, it is exceeded. This allows us to study how the statistical distributions and scaling properties of burst parameters vary over solar cycles 23 and 24. We find the distributions of burst duration and integrated burst size vary over the solar cycle, and between the equivalent phases of consecutive cycles. However, there exists a single power law scaling relation between burst size and duration, with a joint areaâduration scaling exponent α that is independent of the solar cycle. This provides a solar cycle invariant constraint between possible sizes and durations of solar wind bursts that can occur
Fact: Many SCUBA galaxies harbour AGNs
Deep SCUBA surveys have uncovered a large population of ultra-luminous
galaxies at z>1. These sources are often assumed to be starburst galaxies, but
there is growing evidence that a substantial fraction host an AGN (i.e., an
accreting super-massive black hole). We present here possibly the strongest
evidence for this viewpoint to date: the combination of ultra-deep X-ray
observations (the 2 Ms Chandra Deep Field-North) and deep optical spectroscopic
data. We argue that upward of 38% of bright (f850um>=5mJy) SCUBA galaxies host
an AGN, a fraction of which are obscured QSOs (i.e., L_X>3x10^{44} erg/s).
However, using evidence from a variety of analyses, we argue that in almost all
cases the AGNs are not bolometrically important (i.e., <20%). Thus, star
formation appears to dominate their bolometric output. A substantial fraction
of bright SCUBA galaxies show evidence for binary AGN activity. Since these
systems appear to be interacting and merging at optical/near-IR wavelengths,
their super-massive black holes will eventually coalesce.Comment: Invited contribution - 10 pages, 4 figures, to appear in the
Proceedings of the ESO/USM/MPE Workshop on "Multiwavelength Mapping of Galaxy
Formation and Evolution", eds. R. Bender and A. Renzin
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