1,445 research outputs found
Parallel-propagating Fluctuations at Proton-kinetic Scales in the Solar Wind are Dominated by Kinetic Instabilities
We use magnetic helicity to characterise solar wind fluctuations at
proton-kinetic scales from Wind observations. For the first time, we separate
the contributions to helicity from fluctuations propagating at angles
quasi-parallel and oblique to the local mean magnetic field, . We
find that the helicity of quasi-parallel fluctuations is consistent with
Alfv\'en-ion cyclotron and fast magnetosonic-whistler modes driven by proton
temperature anisotropy instabilities and the presence of a relative drift
between -particles and protons. We also find that the helicity of
oblique fluctuations has little dependence on proton temperature anisotropy and
is consistent with fluctuations from the anisotropic turbulent cascade. Our
results show that parallel-propagating fluctuations at proton-kinetic scales in
the solar wind are dominated by proton temperature anisotropy instabilities and
not the turbulent cascade. We also provide evidence that the behaviour of
fluctuations at these scales is independent of the origin and macroscopic
properties of the solar wind.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJL. 6 Pages, 3 figures, 1 tabl
Determining the Kappa Distributions of Space Plasmas from Observations in a Limited Energy Range
Spacecraft observations allow us to reconstruct the velocity distributions of space plasmas, which fully describe the kinetic state of the plasma. Space plasmas often exist in stationary states out of equilibrium, which are typically described by kappa distributions. Thus, the kappa index and temperature that govern these distributions are parameters that need to be determined for a full and accurate description of these plasmas. In this study, we demonstrate a novel and reliable way to determine the kappa index and temperature of plasma distribution functions constructed from counts observed in a narrow energy range by typical electrostatic sensors. Our method applies to cases in which the high-energy tail of the plasma is observed with significant uncertainty, or not observed at all. For the validation of our method, we produce pseudo-observations for typical input plasma parameters, specifically considering the design of the ion plasma instrument SWA-PAS on board the Solar Orbiter mission. Our method reliably estimates the relevant plasma parameters by fitting the angular spread of the distribution in a narrow energy range around the core bulk energy. We compare the output of our technique with the input parameters used to generate artificial data for a selected range of the kappa index and the temperature, and for a bulk energy typical for the solar wind. In addition, we study the effects of Poisson errors on the instrument's counting statistics, test our method against Helios 2 measurements, and discuss its potential applications and limitations
The Role of Proton-Cyclotron Resonance as a Dissipation Mechanism in Solar Wind Turbulence: A Statistical Study at Ion-Kinetic Scales
We use magnetic field and ion moment data from the MFI and SWE instruments
onboard the Wind spacecraft to study the nature of solar wind turbulence at
ion-kinetic scales. We analyze the spectral properties of magnetic field
fluctuations between 0.1 and 5.5 Hz over 2012 using an automated routine,
computing high-resolution 92 s power and magnetic helicity spectra. To ensure
the spectral features are physical, we make the first in-flight measurement of
the MFI `noise-floor' using tail-lobe crossings of the Earth's magnetosphere
during early 2004. We utilize Taylor's hypothesis to Doppler-shift into the
spacecraft frequency frame, finding that the spectral break observed at these
frequencies is best associated with the proton-cyclotron resonance scale,
, compared to the proton inertial length and proton gyroscale
. This agreement is strongest when we consider periods where
, and is consistent with a spectral break at for
and for . We also find that
the coherent magnetic helicity signature observed at these frequencies is
bounded at low frequencies by and its absolute value reaches a maximum
at . These results hold in both slow and fast wind streams, but with a
better correlation in the more Alfv\'enic fast wind where the helicity
signature is strongest. We conclude that these findings are consistent with
proton-cyclotron resonance as an important mechanism for dissipation of
turbulent energy in the solar wind, occurring at least half the time in our
selected interval. However, we do not rule out additional mechanisms.Comment: 16 pages, 11 figures. Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical
Journal. Please contact authors to obtain WIND MFI 'noise-floor' for use in
other studie
Permutation Entropy And Statistical Complexity Analysis Of Turbulence In Laboratory Plasmas And The Solar Wind
The Bandt-Pompe permutation entropy and the Jensen-Shannon statistical complexity are used to analyze fluctuating time series of three different turbulent plasmas: the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence in the plasma wind tunnel of the Swarthmore Spheromak Experiment (SSX), drift-wave turbulence of ion saturation current fluctuations in the edge of the Large Plasma Device (LAPD), and fully developed turbulent magnetic fluctuations of the solar wind taken from the Wind spacecraft. The entropy and complexity values are presented as coordinates on the CH plane for comparison among the different plasma environments and other fluctuation models. The solar wind is found to have the highest permutation entropy and lowest statistical complexity of the three data sets analyzed. Both laboratory data sets have larger values of statistical complexity, suggesting that these systems have fewer degrees of freedom in their fluctuations, with SSX magnetic fluctuations having slightly less complexity than the LAPD edge I_sat. The CH plane coordinates are compared to the shape and distribution of a spectral decomposition of the wave forms. These results suggest that fully developed turbulence (solar wind) occupies the lower-right region of the CH plane, and that other plasma systems considered to be turbulent have less permutation entropy and more statistical complexity. This paper presents use of this statistical analysis tool on solar wind plasma, as well as on an MHD turbulent experimental plasma
Tracking Cooper Pairs in a Cuprate Superconductor by Ultrafast Angle-Resolved Photoemission
In high-temperature superconductivity, the process that leads to the
formation of Cooper pairs, the fundamental charge carriers in any
superconductor, remains mysterious. We use a femtosecond laser pump pulse to
perturb superconducting Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+{\delta}, and study subsequent dynamics
using time- and angle-resolved photoemission and infrared reflectivity probes.
Gap and quasiparticle population dynamics reveal marked dependencies on both
excitation density and crystal momentum. Close to the d-wave nodes, the
superconducting gap is sensitive to the pump intensity and Cooper pairs
recombine slowly. Far from the nodes pumping affects the gap only weakly and
recombination processes are faster. These results demonstrate a new window into
the dynamical processes that govern quasiparticle recombination and gap
formation in cuprates.Comment: 22 pages, 9 figure
Angular hadron correlations probing the early medium evolution
Hard processes are a well calibrated probe to study heavy-ion collisions.
However, the information to be gained from the nuclear suppression factor R_AA
is limited, hene one has to study more differential observables to do medium
tomography. The angular correlations of hadrons associated with a hard trigger
appear suitable as they show a rich pattern when going from low p_T to high
p_T. Of prime interest is the fate of away side partons with an in-medium
pathlength O(several fm). At high p_T the correlations become dominated by the
punchtrough of the away side parton with subsequent fragmentation. We discuss
what information about the medium density can be gained from the data.Comment: Talk given at the 19th International Conference on Ultrarelativistic
Nucleus-Nucleus Collisions: Quark Matter 2006 (QM 2006), Shanghai, China,
14-20 Nov 200
Molecular basis for the hormonal regulation of the tyrosine aminotransferase and tryptophane oxygenase genes
A Generalized Diffusion Tensor for Fully Anisotropic Diffusion of Energetic Particles in the Heliospheric Magnetic Field
The spatial diffusion of cosmic rays in turbulent magnetic fields can, in the
most general case, be fully anisotropic, i.e. one has to distinguish three
diffusion axes in a local, field-aligned frame. We reexamine the transformation
for the diffusion tensor from this local to a global frame, in which the Parker
transport equation for energetic particles is usually formulated and solved.
Particularly, we generalize the transformation formulas to allow for an
explicit choice of two principal local perpendicular diffusion axes. This
generalization includes the 'traditional' diffusion tensor in the special case
of isotropic perpendicular diffusion. For the local frame, we motivate the
choice of the Frenet-Serret trihedron which is related to the intrinsic
magnetic field geometry. We directly compare the old and the new tensor
elements for two heliospheric magnetic field configurations, namely the hybrid
Fisk and the Parker field. Subsequently, we examine the significance of the
different formulations for the diffusion tensor in a standard 3D model for the
modulation of galactic protons. For this we utilize a numerical code to
evaluate a system of stochastic differential equations equivalent to the Parker
transport equation and present the resulting modulated spectra. The computed
differential fluxes based on the new tensor formulation deviate from those
obtained with the 'traditional' one (only valid for isotropic perpendicular
diffusion) by up to 60% for energies below a few hundred MeV depending on
heliocentric distance.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, accepted in Ap
Recommended from our members
Evaluation of materials and surface treatments for the DWPF melter pour spout bellows protective liner
A study was undertaken to evaluate a variety of materials and coatings for the DWPF pour spout bellows liner. The intent was to identify materials that would minimize or eliminate adherence of glass on the bellows liner wall and help minimize possible pluggage during glass pouring operations in DWPF. Glass has been observed adhering to the current bellow`s liner, which is made of 304L stainless steel. Materials were identified which successfully allowed molten glass to hit these surfaces and not adhere. Results of this study suggest that if these materials are used in the pouring system glass could still fall into the canister without appreciable plugging, even if an unstable glass stream is produced. The materials should next be evaluated under the most realistic DWPF conditions possible. Other findings of this study include the following: (1) increasing coupon thickness produced a favorable increase in the glass sticking temperature; (2) highly polished surfaces, with the exception of the oxygen-free copper coupon coated with Armoloy dense chromium, did not produce a significant improvement in the glass sticking temperature, increasing angle of contact of the coupon to the falling glass did not yield a significant performance improvement; (3) electroplating with gold and silver and various diffusion coatings did not produce a significant increase in the glass sticking temperature. However, they may provide added oxidation and corrosion resistance for copper and bronze liners. Boron nitride coatings delaminated immediately after contact with the molten glass
Evaluating the Performance of a Plasma Analyzer for a Space Weather Monitor Mission Concept
We use historical analysis of solar wind plasma and coronal mass ejections to define the range of performance required for an ion analyzer for future space weather monitoring missions. We adopt the design of a top hat electrostatic analyzer, capable of measuring the plasma protons and constructing their three-dimensional distribution functions. The design is based on previous heritage instruments and allows monitoring of extreme space weather events. In order to evaluate the future observations and their analysis methods, we model the expected response of the instrument in simulated plasma conditions. We evaluate a novel analysis method which can determine on board the plasma bulk properties, such as density, velocity, and temperature from the statistical moments of the observed velocity distribution functions of the plasma particles. We quantify the accuracy of the derived parameters critical for space weather purposes, by comparing them with the corresponding input solar wind parameters. In order to validate the instrument design, we examine the accuracy over the entire range of the input parameters we expect to observe in solar wind, from benign to extreme space weather conditions. We also use realistic parameters of fast solar wind streams and interplanetary coronal mass ejections as measured by the Advanced Composition Explorer spacecraft, to investigate the performance of the example instrument and the accuracy of the analysis. We discuss the achieved accuracy and its relevance to space weather monitoring concepts. We address sources of significant errors, and we demonstrate potential improvements by using a fitting analysis method to derive the results
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