6,160 research outputs found
Global Alfven Eigenmodes in the H-1 heliac
Recent upgrades in H-1 power supplies have enabled the operation of the H-1
experiment at higher heating powers than previously attainable. A heating power
scan in mixed hydrogen/helium plasmas reveals a change in mode activity with
increasing heating power. At low power (<50 kW) modes with beta-induced Alfven
eigenmode (BAE) frequency scaling are observed. At higher power modes
consistent with an analysis of nonconventional Global Alfven Eigenmodes (GAEs)
are observed, the subject of this work. We have computed the mode continuum,
and identified GAE structures using the ideal MHD solver CKA and the
gyrokinetic code EUTERPE. An analytic model for ICRH-heated minority ions is
used to estimate the fast ion temperature from the hydrogen species. Linear
growth rate scans using a local flux surface stability calculation, LGRO, are
performed. These studies demonstrate growth from circulating particles whose
speed is significantly less than the Alfven speed, and are resonant with the
mode through harmonics of the Fourier decomposition of the strongly-shaped
heliac magnetic field. They reveal drive is possible with a small, hot
energetic tail of the hydrogen species. Local linear growth rate scans are also
complemented with global calculations from CKA and EUTERPE. These qualitatively
confirm the findings from the LGRO study, and show that the inclusion of finite
Larmor radius effects can reduce the growth rate by a factor of three, but do
not affect marginal stability. Finally, a study of damping of the global mode
with the thermal plasma is conducted, computing continuum, and the damping
arising from parallel electric fields. We find that continuum damping is of
order 0.1% for the configuration studied. The inclusion of resistivity lifts
the damping to 19%. Such large damping is consistent with experimental
observations that in absence of drive the mode decays rapidly (~0.1 ms).Comment: 18 pages, 15 figures, submitted 07/04/2017 to Plasma Physics and
Controlled Fusio
Magnetic friction in Ising spin systems
A new contribution to friction is predicted to occur in systems with magnetic
correlations: Tangential relative motion of two Ising spin systems pumps energy
into the magnetic degrees of freedom. This leads to a friction force
proportional to the area of contact. The velocity and temperature dependence of
this force are investigated. Magnetic friction is strongest near the critical
temperature, below which the spin systems order spontaneously.
Antiferromagnetic coupling leads to stronger friction than ferromagnetic
coupling with the same exchange constant. The basic dissipation mechanism is
explained. If the coupling of the spin system to the heat bath is weak, a
surprising effect is observed in the ordered phase: The relative motion acts
like a heat pump cooling the spins in the vicinity of the friction surface.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Two-dimensional photonic crystal polarizer
A novel polarizer made from two-dimensional photonic bandgap materials was
demonstrated theoretically. This polarizer is fundamentally different from the
conventinal ones. It can function in a wide frequency range with high
performance and the size can be made very compact, which renders it useful as a
micropolarizer in microoptics.Comment: 8 pages, RevTex, 4 figure
Ecologically and geologically relevant isotope signatures of C, N, and S: okenone producing purple sulfur bacteria part I
Purple sulfur bacteria (PSB) are known to couple the carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur cycling in euxinic environments. This is the first study with multiple strains and species of okenone-producing PSB to examine the carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and sulfur (S) metabolisms and isotopic signatures in controlled laboratory conditions, investigating what isotopic fractionations might be recorded in modern environments and the geologic record. PSB play an integral role in the ecology of euxinic environments and produce the unique molecular fossil okenane, derived from the diagenetic alteration of the carotenoid pigment okenone. Cultures of Marichromatium purpuratum 1591 (Mpurp1591) were observed to have carbon isotope fractionations (13_ε_biomass – CO_2), via RuBisCO, ranging from −16.1 to −23.2‰ during exponential and stationary phases of growth. Cultures of Thiocapsa marina 5653 (Tmar5653) and Mpurp1591 had a nitrogen isotope fractionation (15_ε_biomass – NH4) of −15‰, via glutamate dehydrogenase, measured and recorded for the first time in PSB. The δ^(34)S_VCDT values and amount of stored elemental sulfur for Mpurp1591 cells grown autotrophically and photoheterotrophically were dependent upon their carbon metabolic pathways. We show that PSB may contribute to the isotopic enrichments observed in modern and ancient anoxic basins. In a photoheterotrophic culture of Mpurp1591 that switched to autotrophy once the organic substrate was consumed, there were bulk biomass δ13C values that span a broader range than recorded across the Late Devonian, Permian–Triassic, Triassic–Jurassic, and OAE2 mass extinction boundaries. This finding stresses the complexities in interpreting and assigning δ13C values to bulk organic matter preserved in the geologic record
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