Perpendicular Velocity Research Articles

Direct evidence of E × B flow changes at the onset of resonant magnetic perturbation-driven edge-localized mode crash suppression

The bifurcation of perpendicular mode velocity near the pedestal top () at the onset of RMP-driven edge-localized mode (ELM)-crash suppression has been directly measured by using an electron cyclotron emission imaging diagnostic on KSTAR. The ELM crashes are suppressed along with a sudden reduction of , which synchronizes with the transition into and out of the ELM-crash suppression. The change of flow appears mainly responsible for the change of , whose magnitude is the smallest near the normalized flux surface during the ELM-crash suppression. The plasma response to the RMP field was most enhanced in the vicinity of during the ELM-crash suppression and showed a hysteresis behavior with respect to resonant field strength. With these changes, a strong nonlinear coupling between turbulent eddies was observed in the ELM-crash suppression, which is an important feature of the ELM-crash suppression.

Magnetic dipolarizations inside geosynchronous orbit with tailward ion flows

Abstract. Electromagnetic field and plasma data from the Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) near-Earth probes are used to investigate magnetic dipolarizations inside geosynchronous orbit on 27 August 2014 during an intense substorm with AEmax∼1000 nT. THEMIS-D (TH-D) was located inside geosynchronous orbit around midnight in the interval from 09:25 to 09:55 UT. During this period, two distinct magnetic dipolarizations with tailward ion flows are observed by TH-D. The first one is indicated by the magnetic elevation angle increase from 15 to 25∘ around 09:30:40 UT. The tailward perpendicular velocity is V⊥x∼-50 km s−1. The second one is presented by the elevation angle increase from 25 to 45∘ around 09:36 UT, and the tailward perpendicular velocity is V⊥x∼-70 km s−1. These two significant dipolarizations are accompanied with the sharp increase in the energy flux of energetic electron inside geosynchronous orbit. After a 5 min expansion of the near-Earth plasma sheet (NEPS), THEMIS-E (TH-E) located outside geosynchronous orbit also detected this tailward expanding plasma sheet with ion flows of −150 km s−1. The dipolarization propagates tailward with a speed of −47 km s−1 along a 2.2 RE distance in the X direction between TH-D and TH-E within 5 min. These dipolarizations with tailward ion flows observed inside geosynchronous orbit indicate a new energy transfer path in the inner magnetosphere during substorms.

Two kinematically different Large Magellanic Cloud old globular cluster populations unveiled from Gaia DR2 data sets

AbstractWe derive mean proper motions of 15 known Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) old globular clusters (GCs) from the Gaia DR2 data sets. When these mean proper motions are gathered with existent radial velocities to compose the GCs’ velocity vectors, we found that the projection of the velocity vectors onto the LMC plane and those perpendicular to it tell us about two distinct kinematical GC populations. Such a distinction becomes clear if the GCs are split at a perpendicular velocity of 10 km/s (absolute value). The two different kinematics groups also exhibit different spatial distributions. Those with smaller vertical velocities are part of the LMC disk, while those with larger values are closely distributed like a spheroidal component. Since GCs in both kinematic-structural components share similar ages and metallicities, we speculate with the possibility that their origins could have occurred through a fast collapse that formed halo and disk concurrently.

Numerical study of tearing mode seeding in tokamak X-point plasma

A detailed understanding of island seeding is crucial to avoid neoclassical tearing modes and their negative consequences like confinement degradation and disruptions. In the present work, we investigate the growth of 2/1 islands in response to magnetic perturbations. Although we use externally applied perturbations produced by resonant magnetic perturbation (RMP) coils for this study, the results are directly transferable to island seeding by other MHD instabilities creating a resonant magnetic field component at the rational surface. Experimental results for 2/1 island penetration from ASDEX Upgrade are presented extending previous studies. Simulations are based on an ASDEX Upgrade L-mode discharge with low collisionality and active RMP coils. Our numerical studies are performed with the 3D, two-fluid, nonlinear MHD code JOREK. All three phases of mode seeding observed in the experiment are also seen in the simulations: first, a weak response phase characterized by large perpendicular electron flow velocities followed by a fast growth of the magnetic island size accompanied by a reduction of the perpendicular electron velocity and finally the saturation to a fully formed island state with perpendicular electron velocity close to zero. Thresholds for mode penetration are observed in the plasma rotation as well as in the RMP coil current. A hysteresis of the island size and electron perpendicular velocity is observed between the ramping up and down of the RMP amplitude consistent with an analytically predicted bifurcation. The transition from dominant kink/bending to tearing parity during the penetration is investigated.

Dynamics of cold pulses induced by super-sonic molecular beam injection in the EAST tokamak

Evolution of electron temperature, electron density and its fluctuation with high spatial and temporal resolutions are presented for the cold pulse propagation induced by super-sonic molecular beam injection (SMBI) in ohmic plasmas in the EAST tokamak. The non-local heat transport occurs for discharges with plasma current kA (), and electron density ne0 below a critical value of m−3. In contrary to the response of core electron temperature and electron density (roughly 10 ms after SMBI), the electron density fluctuation in the plasma core increases promptly after SMBI and reaches its maximum around 15 ms after SMBI. The electron density fluctuation in the plasma core begins to decrease before the core electron temperature reaches its maximum (roughly 30 ms). It was also observed that the turbulence perpendicular velocity close to the inversion point of the temperature perturbation changes sign after SMBI.

Two kinematically distinct old globular cluster populations in the Large Magellanic Cloud

ABSTRACT We report results of proper motions of 15 known Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) old globular clusters (GCs) derived from the Gaia DR2 data sets. When these mean proper motions are gathered with existent radial velocity measurements to compose the GCs’ velocity vectors, we found that the projection of the velocity vectors on to the LMC plane and those perpendicular to it tells us about two distinct kinematic GC populations. Such a distinction becomes clear if the GCs are split at a perpendicular velocity of 10 km s−1 (absolute value). The two different kinematic groups also exhibit different spatial distributions. Those with smaller vertical velocities are a part of the LMC disc, while those with larger values are closely distributed like a spherical component. Since GCs in both kinematic–structural components share similar ages and metallicities, we speculate with the possibility that their origins could have occurred through a fast collapse that formed halo and disc concurrently.

Neutralization of keV-energy alkali-metal ions colliding at gold surfaces

Li+ and Na+ ions are scattered from Au(110) and Au(111) surfaces in the keV-energy range, respectively. The pronounced Li° and Na° fractions non-monotonically vary with incident energy and exit angle for high work function gold surfaces. In particular, the azimuthal angle dependence of Li° fraction has been observed at low incident energies for a grazing exit angle. The simple calculations are presented to compare with the experimental data. Our findings clearly indicate that both the perpendicular and parallel exit velocity affect the final neutral fraction.

Molecular Tagging Velocimetry in Superfluid Helium-4: Progress, Issues, and Future Development

Helium-4 in the superfluid phase (He II) is a two-fluid system that exhibits fascinating quantum hydrodynamics with important scientific and engineering applications. However, the lack of high-precision flow measurement tools in He II has impeded the progress in understanding and utilizing its hydrodynamics. In recent years, there have been extensive efforts in developing quantitative flow visualization techniques applicable to He II. In particular, a powerful molecular tagging velocimetry (MTV) technique, based on tracking thin lines of He$^*_2$ excimer molecules created via femtosecond laser-field ionization in helium, has been developed in our lab. This technique allows unambiguous measurement of the normal-fluid velocity field in the two-fluid system. Nevertheless, there are two limitations of this technique: 1) only the velocity component perpendicular to the tracer line can be measured; and 2) there is an inherent error in determining the perpendicular velocity. In this paper, we discuss how these issues can be resolved by advancing the MTV technique. We also discuss two novel schemes for tagging and producing He$^*_2$ tracers. The first method allows the creation of a tagged He$^*_2$ tracer line without the use of an expensive femtosecond laser. The second method enables full-space velocity field measurement through tracking small clouds of He$^*_2$ molecules created via neutron-$^3$He absorption reactions in He II.

Microwave frequency comb Doppler reflectometer applying fast digital data acquisition system in LHD.

We succeeded in increasing the radial observation points of the microwave frequency comb Doppler reflectometer system from 8 to 20 (or especially up to 45) using the high sampling rate of 40 GS/s digital signal processing. For a new acquisition system, the estimation scheme of the Doppler shifted frequency is constructed and compared with the conventional technique. Also, the fine radial profile of perpendicular velocity is obtained, and it is found that the perpendicular velocity profile is consistent with the E × B drift velocity one.

Astrometric detection of intermediate-mass black holes at the Galactic Centre

We assess the astrometric detectability of intermediate-mass black holes populating the inner parsec of the Milky Way Galaxy. The presence of these objects induces dynamical effects on Sgr A* and the star S2, which could be detected by next generation astrometric instruments that enable micro-arcsecond astrometry. An allowed population of ten $10^4~M_{\odot}$ IMBHs within one parsec induces an angular shift of about 65 $\mu$as yr$^{-1}$ on the position of Sgr A*, corresponding to a perpendicular velocity component magnitude of 1.6 km s$^{-1}$. It also induces changes in the orbit of S2 that surpass those induced by general relativity but lie within observational constraints, generating a mean angular shift in periapse and apoapse of 62 $\mu$as and 970 $\mu$as respectively.

Observation of geodesic acoustic mode in EAST using Doppler backscattering system

This paper presents an investigation of the geodesic acoustic mode (GAM) using two poloidally separated Doppler backscattering systems in Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak. Each system allows for the simultaneous measurement of turbulence rotation velocity and density fluctuations with high precision. With the Doppler backscattering systems, the GAM frequency, the symmetric feature of poloidal flow fluctuations, and the interaction between GAM and turbulence are surveyed. The results of bispectral analysis show a clear interaction of GAM with the ambient turbulence. A clear measurement of GAM in the envelope of plasma density fluctuations using Doppler backscatter system is shown, and the modulations of the turbulence perpendicular velocity on the density turbulence are correlated at two different poloidal position.

A novel, tunable, multimodal microwave system for microwave reflectometry system.

Based on a new technique, a tunable, multi-channel system that covers the Q-band (33-55 GHz) is presented in this article. It has a potential use of the Doppler backscattering system diagnostic that can measure the turbulence radial correlation and the perpendicular velocity of turbulence by changing the incident angle. The system consists primarily of a double-sideband (DSB) modulation and a multiplier, which creates four probing frequencies. The probing frequency enables the simultaneous analysis of the density fluctuations and flows at four distinct radial regions in tokamak plasma. The amplitude of the probing frequency can be adjusted by the initial phase of the intermediate frequency (IF) input from the double-sideband, and the typical flatness is less than 10 dB. The system was tested in the lab with a rotating grating, and the results show that the system can operate in the frequency range of 33-55 GHz with a Q-band multitude and that the power of each channel can be adjusted by the phase of the IF input of DSB.

V-band Doppler backscattering diagnostic in the TCV tokamak.

A variable configuration V-band heterodyne Doppler back-scattering diagnostic has been recently made operational in the tokamak configuration variable. This article describes the hardware setup options, flexible quasi-optical launcher antenna, data-analysis techniques, and first data. The diagnostic uses a fast arbitrary waveform generator as the main oscillator and commercial vector network analyzer extension modules as the main mm-wave hardware. It allows sweepable single or multi-frequency operation. A flexible quasi-optical launcher antenna allows 3D poloidal (10°-58°) and toroidal (-180° to 180°) steering of the beam with 0.2° accuracy. A pair of fast HE11 miter-bend polarizers allow flexible coupling to either O or X mode and programmable polarization changes during the shot. These have been used to measure the magnetic-field pitch angle in the edge of the plasma by monitoring the backscattered signal power. Ray-tracing simulations reveal an available k⊥ range between 3 and 16 cm-1 with a resolution of 2-4 cm-1. Perpendicular rotation velocity estimates compare well against ExB plasma poloidal rotation estimates from charge exchange recombination spectroscopy.

The role of magnetic fields in the early stages of star formation

AbstractMagnetic fields are believed to redistribute part of the angular momentum during the collapse and could explain the order-of-magnitude difference between the angular momentum observed in protostellar envelopes and that of a typical main sequence star. The Class 0 phase is the main accretion phase during which most of the final stellar material is collected on the central embryo. To study the structure of the magnetic fields on 50-2000 au scales during that key stage, we acquired SMA polarization observations (870μm) of 12 low-mass Class 0 protostars. In spite of their low luminosity, we detect dust polarized emission in all of them. We observe depolarization effects toward high-density regions potentially due to variations in alignment efficiency or in the dust itself or geometrical effects. By comparing the misalignment between the magnetic field and the outflow orientation, we show that the B is either aligned or perpendicular to the outflow direction. We observe a coincidence between the misalignment and the presence of large perpendicular velocity gradients and fragmentation in the protostar (Galametz et al. 2018). Our team is using MHD simulations combined with the radiative transfer code POLARIS to produce synthetic maps of the polarized emission. This work is helping us understand how the magnetic field varies from the large-scale to the small-scales, quantify beam-averaging biases and study the variations of the polarization angles as a function of wavelength or the assumption made on the grain alignment (see poster by Valdivia).

Ionospheric density and velocity anomalies before M ≥ 6.5 earthquakes observed by DEMETER satellite

The seismo-ionospheric density anomalies have been widely studied for last decades based on ground GPS and satellite in situ observations. In this paper, we analyze both ion density and ion velocity observed by the French satellite DEMETER before 49 earthquakes with M ≥ 6.5 in 2010. The results show that both ion density and ion velocity increase anomalously before the earthquakes. The differences before and after earthquakes are more significant with larger magnitude and shallower depth. The density variations have a positive correlation with the perpendicular velocity, which is related to the perpendicular electric field by E⊥ = V⊥B0 (B0 is the background geomagnetic field). The slopes of ΔNi/Ni (in units of %) vs. V⊥ (in units of m/s) ranges from 0.13 to 0.7. This suggests that the ion density variation is associated with the presence of ion velocity or electric field in the ionosphere. The observed peak perpendicular velocity can reach 300–1300 m/s before the earthquakes, corresponding to a perpendicular electric field E⊥ ≈ 7.5–32.5 mV/m.

A low-frequency variational model for energetic particle effects in the pressure-coupling scheme

Energetic particle effects in magnetic confinement fusion devices are commonly studied by hybrid kinetic-fluid simulation codes whose underlying continuum evolution equations often lack the correct energy balance. While two different kinetic-fluid coupling options are available (current coupling and pressure coupling), this paper applies the Euler–Poincaré variational approach to formulate a new conservative hybrid model in the pressure-coupling scheme. In our case the kinetics of the energetic particles are described by guiding center theory. The interplay between the Lagrangian fluid paths and phase space particle trajectories reflects an intricate variational structure which can be approached by letting the four-dimensional guiding center trajectories evolve in the full six-dimensional phase space. Then, the redundant perpendicular velocity is integrated out to recover a four-dimensional description. A second equivalent variational approach is also reported, which involves the use of phase space Lagrangians. Not only do these variational structures confer on the new model a correct energy balance, but also they produce a cross-helicity invariant which is lost in the other pressure-coupling schemes reported in the literature.

Density fluctuation correlation measurements in ASDEX Upgrade using poloidal and radial correlation reflectometry

The poloidal correlation reflectometry diagnostic operated in ordinary mode with additional radial correlation channel is applied in this paper to investigate the correlation of the turbulent density fluctuations. The perpendicular and radial correlation lengths, l⊥ and lr, the perpendicular velocity v⊥ and the dissipation (mutation) time τd are measured simultaneously from the outer core to edge in the L-mode plasmas of ASDEX Upgrade. It is shown that in the outer core region (0.6 < ρpol < 0.9) the measured correlation lengths scale with the drift wave length, l⊥ ≈ 5ρs and lr ≈ 10ρs, while the dissipation time is inversely correlated with the velocity τd ≈ 40/v⊥(τd is in μs and v⊥ in km s–1). In the pedestal region (0.925 < ρpol < 0.98), where the E × B shear flows are present, a loss of measured correlation is observed which can be explained by a combination of small propagation velocity and an additional reduction of τd. In the Er well region (ρpol ≈ 0.99), the measured perpendicular correlation length increases and the radial correlation length decreases lr ≈ 4ρs compared to the outer core values. The correlation measurements are interpreted in the frame of the linear regime of reflectometry (applied only to ρpol < 0.9). Using the Born approximation we show that the finite wavenumber sensitivity of the reflectometer increases the measured l⊥and lr, but does not affect the measured τd. By the including diagnostic correction the real correlation lengths l⊥ ≈ lr ≈ 3ρs are estimated.

Core radial electric field and transport in Wendelstein 7-X plasmas

The results from the investigation of neoclassical core transport and the role of the radial electric field profile (Er) in the first operational phase of the Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) stellarator are presented. In stellarator plasmas, the details of the Er profile are expected to have a strong effect on both the particle and heat fluxes. Investigation of the radial electric field is important in understanding neoclassical transport and in validation of neoclassical calculations. The radial electric field is closely related to the perpendicular plasma flow (u⊥) through the force balance equation. This allows the radial electric field to be inferred from measurements of the perpendicular flow velocity, which can be measured using the x-ray imaging crystal spectrometer and correlation reflectometry diagnostics. Large changes in the perpendicular rotation, on the order of Δu⊥∼ 5 km/s (ΔEr ∼ 12 kV/m), have been observed within a set of experiments where the heating power was stepped down from 2 MW to 0.6 MW. These experiments are examined in detail to explore the relationship between heating power temperature, and density profiles and the radial electric field. Finally, the inferred Er profiles are compared to initial neoclassical calculations based on measured plasma profiles. The results from several neoclassical codes, sfincs, fortec-3d, and dkes, are compared both with each other and the measurements. These comparisons show good agreement, giving confidence in the applicability of the neoclassical calculations to the W7-X configuration.

Electron Crescent Distributions as a Manifestation of Diamagnetic Drift in an Electron-Scale Current Sheet: Magnetospheric Multiscale Observations Using New 7.5ms Fast Plasma Investigation Moments.

We report Magnetospheric Multiscale observations of electron pressure gradient electric fields near a magnetic reconnection diffusion region using a new technique for extracting 7.5 ms electron moments from the Fast Plasma Investigation. We find that the deviation of the perpendicular electron bulk velocity from E × B drift in the interval where the out‐of‐plane current density is increasing can be explained by the diamagnetic drift. In the interval where the out‐of‐plane current is transitioning to in‐plane current, the electron momentum equation is not satisfied at 7.5 ms resolution.

Evolution of Complex 3D Motions in Spicules

Abstract Ubiquitous transverse oscillations observed in spicular waveguides, identified as the kink wave-mode had previously been reported along with periodic structural distortions of the flux tubes, observed as cross-sectional width and associated photometric variations. Previous studies identified these perturbations as the observed signatures of concurrent kink and sausage wave-modes. High-resolution Hα imaging-spectroscopy data from the CRisp Imaging SpectroPolarimeter at the Swedish Solar Telescope are used to analyze the off-limb spicular structures. For the first time, the evolution of the resultant transverse displacement of the flux-tube structure, estimated from the perpendicular velocity components, is analyzed along with longitudinal, cross-sectional width, photometric, and azimuthal shear/torsion variations. The pulse-like nonlinear kink wave-mode shows strong coupling with these observables, with a period-doubling, -tripling aspect, supported by mutual phase relations concentrated around 0° and ± 180 ° . The three-dimensional ensemble of the observed dynamical components revealed complexities pertinent to the accurate identification and interpretation of, e.g., linear/nonlinear, coupled/uncoupled magnetohydrodynamical wave-modes in spicules.