21,075 research outputs found
Identification of the Sequence of Steps Intrinsic to Spheromak Formation
A planar coaxial electrostatic helicity source is used for studying the relaxation process intrinsic to spheromak formation Experimental observations reveal that spheromak formation involves: (1) breakdown and creation of a number of distinct, arched, filamentary, plasma-filled flux loops that span from cathode to anode gas nozzles, (2) merging of these loops to form a central column, (3) jet-like expansion of the central column, (4) kink instability of the central column, (5) conversion of toroidal flux to poloidal flux by the kink instability. Steps 1 and 3 indicate that spheromak formation involves an MHD pumping of plasma from the gas nozzles into the magnetic flux tube linking the nozzles. In order to measure this pumping, the gas puffing system has been modified to permit simultaneous injection of different gas species into the two ends of the flux tube linking the wall. Gated CCD cameras with narrow-band optical filters are used to track the pumped flows
Real-time detection and tracking of multiple objects with partial decoding in H.264/AVC bitstream domain
In this paper, we show that we can apply probabilistic spatiotemporal
macroblock filtering (PSMF) and partial decoding processes to effectively
detect and track multiple objects in real time in H.264|AVC bitstreams with
stationary background. Our contribution is that our method cannot only show
fast processing time but also handle multiple moving objects that are
articulated, changing in size or internally have monotonous color, even though
they contain a chaotic set of non-homogeneous motion vectors inside. In
addition, our partial decoding process for H.264|AVC bitstreams enables to
improve the accuracy of object trajectories and overcome long occlusion by
using extracted color information.Comment: SPIE Real-Time Image and Video Processing Conference 200
Large density amplification measured on jets ejected from a magnetized plasma gun
Observation of a large density amplification in the collimating plasma jet ejected from a coplanar coaxial plasma gun is reported. The jet velocity is ~30 km s^-1 and the electron density increases from ~10^20 to 10^(22–23) m^-3. In previous spheromak experiments, electron density of the order 10^(19–21) m^-3 had been measured in the flux conserver region, but no density measurement had been reported for the source gun region. The coplanar geometry of our electrodes permits direct observation of the entire plasma dynamics including the source region. Analysis of Stark broadened spectral lines shows that the electron density increases by a factor of 100 as the jet collimates, with a peak density of up to 10^(22–23) m^-3. The observed density amplification is interpreted according to an MHD theory that explains collimation of current-carrying plasma-filled magnetic flux tubes. Issues affecting interpretation of Stark broadened line profiles and the possibility of using the high-density plasma jet for tokamak fuel injection are discussed
Creating maximally entangled atomic states in a Bose-Einstein condensate
We propose a protocol to create maximally entangled pairs, triplets,
quartiles, and other clusters of Bose condensed atoms starting from a
condensate in the Mott insulator state. The essential element is to drive
single atom Raman transitions using laser pulses. Our scheme is simple,
efficient, and can be readily applied to the recent experimental system as
reported by Greiner {\it et al.} [ Nature {\bf 413}, 44 (2002)].Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures. revised version as to be publishe
Dipolar effect in coherent spin mixing of two atoms in a single optical lattice site
We show that atomic dipolar effects are detectable in the system that
recently demonstrated two-atom coherent spin dynamics within individual lattice
sites of a Mott state. Based on a two-state approximation for the two-atom
internal states and relying on a variational approach, we have estimated the
spin dipolar effect. Despite the absolute weakness of the dipole-dipole
interaction, it is shown that it leads to experimentally observable effects in
the spin mixing dynamics.Comment: 4 pages, 3 color eps figures, to appear in Phys. Rev. Let
Coherent spin mixing dynamics in a spin-1 atomic condensate
We study the coherent off-equilibrium spin mixing inside an atomic
condensate. Using mean field theory and adopting the single spatial mode
approximation (SMA), the condensate spin dynamics is found to be well described
by that of a nonrigid pendulum, and displays a variety of periodic oscillations
in an external magnetic field. Our results illuminate several recent
experimental observations and provide critical insights into the observation of
coherent interaction-driven oscillations in a spin-1 condensate.Comment: 6 pages, 5 eps figures, update the discussion of the experimental
result
- …