Physics Commons^™

Magnetic Control Of Convection In Nonconducting Diamagnetic Fluids, J. Huang, D. D. Gray, Boyd F. Edwards

All Physics Faculty Publications

Inhomogeneous magnetic fields exert a body force on electrically nonconducting, diamagnetic fluids. This force can be used to compensate for gravity and to control convection. The field effect on convection is represented by a dimensionless vector parameter R_m=(μ₀αχ₀d³ΔT/ρ₀νD_T)(H⋅∇H)_r=0^ext, which measures the relative strength of the induced magnetic buoyancy force due to the applied field gradient. The vertical component of this parameter competes with the gravitational buoyancy effect and a critical relationship between this component and the Rayleigh number is identified for the onset of convection. …

Applications Of Secondary Electron Energy- And Angular-Distributions To Spacecraft Charging, Neal Nickles, R. E. Davies

All Physics Faculty Presentations

Secondary electron (SE) emission from spacecraft surfaces as a result of energetic electron bombardment is a key process in the electrical charging of spacecraft. It has been suggested that incorporating more complete knowledge of the energy- and angular-distributions of secondary electrons is necessary to fully model how SE emission and spacecraft charging are affected by re-adsorption of low energy electrons in the presence of charge-induced electrostatic fields and ambient magnetic fields in the spacecraft environment. We present data for such energy- and angular-distributions from sputtered, polycrystalline gold surfaces. The data are compared to empirical SE emission models and found to …

Low Energy Electron Gun Power Control Unit, Chad Fish, Jr Dennison

Senior Theses and Projects

Near-Earth orbiting spacecraft are subject to a variety of physical environmental elements. Of these, natural space plasma and solar radiation produce spacecraft charging. Spacecraft charging consists of surface (external) and deep (internal) dielectric charging.

Natural space plasma is composed of electrons and positively charged atoms called ions. The plasma is generated by energy from solar radiation and high energy particles emitted by geomagnetic storms. The electrons produce a negative current and the ions produce a positive current. Positive photoelectron currents produced by solar radiation of spacecraft surfaces also add to the electrical fluxesⁱ.

As spacecraft move through the …

Long Base-Line Measurements Of Short Period Mesospheric Gravity Waves During The Seek Campaign, Michael J. Taylor, S. H. Seo, T. Nakamura, T. Tsuda, H. Fukunishi, Y. Takahashi

All Physics Faculty Publications

Simultaneous observations of short‐period (<1 hour) mesospheric gravity waves were made over an extended base‐line (∼660 km) from two sites in Japan (at Shigaraki and Yamagawa) during the SEEK (Sporadic‐E Experiment over Kyushu) campaign, 9–23 August, 1996. Coincident image data obtained on four nights provided a rare opportunity to investigate the horizontal spatial extent and propagation characteristics of the waves in detail. Surprisingly, out of a total of 12 events observed from Shigaraki and 10 from Yamagawa at most only three exhibited similar propagation characteristics at each site. The majority of the wave displays (∼70–75%) had quite dissimilar characteristics suggesting a preponderance for localized wave motions of limited lifetimes and geographical extent. A marked preference for wave progression towards the N‐NE indicates that the gravity waves imaged in the near infrared OH and OI (557.7 nm) nightglow emissions were probably not directly associated with the observed E‐region irregularities.

Possible Evidence Of Gravity Wave Coupling Into The Mid-Latitude F Region Ionosphere During The Seek Campaign, Michael J. Taylor, J. M. Jahn, S. Fukao, A. Saito

All Physics Faculty Publications

On five of eight observation nights during the 1996 SEEK (Sporadic E Experiment over Kyushu) campaign, Japan, unusual “wave‐like” structures were imaged in the 630 nm thermospheric nightglow emission. Four of these events were observed to travel towards the southwest, providing new evidence in support of recent theories describing the coupling of medium‐scale gravity waves into the mid‐latitude F region ionosphere. Available ionosonde data and the visual characteristics of the wave structures indicate no association with the occurrence of mid‐latitude spread F or F region upwellings. Instead, the data support the novel concept of feedback from the ionosphere into the …

Thermoconvective Instability Of Paramagnetic Fluids In A Nonuniform Magnetic Field, J. Huang, D. D. Gray, Boyd F. Edwards

All Physics Faculty Publications

The effect of a static, nonuniform magnetic field on a laterally unbounded nonconducting paramagnetic fluid layer heated from below or above is studied using a linear stability analysis of the Navier-Stokes equations supplemented by Maxwell’s equations and the appropriate magnetic body force. Buoyancy-driven convection can be controlled by subjecting the layer to a nonuniform magnetic field. Theoretical predictions agree with experimental observations.

Application Of Tomographic Inversion In Studying Airglow In The Mesopause Region, T. Nygren, Michael J. Taylor, M. S. Lehtinen, M. Markkanen

All Physics Faculty Publications

It is pointed out that observations of periodic nightglow structures give excellent information on atmospheric gravity waves in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere. The periods, the horizontal wavelengths and the phase speeds of the waves can be determined from airglow images and, using several cameras, the approximate altitude of the luminous layer can also be determined by triangulation. In this paper the possibility of applying tomographic methods for reconstructing the airglow structures is investigated using numerical simulations. A ground-based chain of cameras is assumed, two-dimensional airglow models in the vertical plane above the chain are constructed, and simulated data are …

Dynamic And Chemical Aspects Of The Mesospheric Na ‘Wall’ Event On 9 October 1993 During The Aloha Campaign, G. R. Swenson, J. Qian, J. M.C. Plane, P. J. Espy, Michael J. Taylor, D. N. Turnbull, R. P. Lowe

All Physics Faculty Publications

On October 9, 1993, observations were made from the National Center for Atmospheric Research Electra aircraft during a flight from Maui, Hawaii, toward a low-pressure system NW of the island, a flight of 7 hours in total. The leading edge (wall) of a bright airglow layer was observed 900 km NW of Maui at 0815 UT, which was traveling at 75 m s−1 toward the SE, reaching Haleakala, Maui, about 3.25 hours later [see Swenson and Espy, 1995]. An intriguing feature associated with the event was the large increase in the mesospheric Na column density at the wall (∼180%). The …

Full-Wave Modeling Of Small-Scale Gravity Waves Using Airborne Lidar And Observations Of The Hawaiian Airglow (Aloha-93) O(1s) Images & Coincident Na Wind/Temperature Lidar Measurements, M. P. Hickey, Michael J. Taylor, C. S. Gardner, C. R. Gibbons

All Physics Faculty Publications

Measurements were made of mesospheric gravity waves in the OI (5577 Å) nightglow observed from Maui, Hawaii, during the Airborne Lidar and Observations of Hawaiian Airglow (ALOHA-93) campaign. Clear, monochromatic gravity waves were observed on several nights. By using a full-wave model that realistically includes the major physical processes in this region, we have simulated the propagation of four waves through the mesopause region and calculated the O(1 S) nightglow response to the waves. Mean winds derived from Na wind/temperature lidar observations were employed in the computations. Wave amplitudes were calculated based on the requirement that the observed and simulated …

Observational Limits For Lidar, Radar And Airglow Imager Measurements Of Gravity Wave Parameters, C. S. Gardner, Michael J. Taylor

All Physics Faculty Publications

By examining the observational limits and biases for lidar, radar, and airglow imager measurements of middle atmosphere gravity waves, we provide plausible explanations for the characteristics of the monochromatic wave parameters that have been reported during the past decade. The systematic dependencies of vertical and horizontal wavelength on wave period, reported in many lidar and some radar studies, are associated with diffusive damping. The prominent waves with the largest amplitudes, most often observed by lidars and radars, are those with vertical phase speeds near the diffusive damping limit. The narrow range of horizontal phase velocities of the waves seen by …

Observed Coupling Of The Mesosphere Inversion Layer To The Thermal Tidal Structure, J W. Meriwether, X Gao, Vincent B. Wickwar, T D. Wilkerson, K C. Beissner, S C. Collins, M E. Hagan

All Physics Faculty Publications

Rayleigh lidar observations of mesosphere temperature profiles obtained from 40 to ∼100 km from Logan, Utah (41.7, 111.8 W, altitude, 1.9 km) over 10 nights in late February, 1995, revealed an interesting development between 60 to 75 km of a winter mesosphere inversion layer with an amplitude of ∼20–30 K and a downward phase progression of ∼1 km/hr. The data also showed two altitude regions exhibiting significant cooling of 10–30 K in extent. These were located below and above the peak of the inversion layer, respectively, at altitudes of ∼50–55 km and ∼70–80 km. When these results were compared with …

Secondary Electron Emission And Spacecraft Charging, Neal Nickles, John R. Dennison

All Physics Faculty Publications

Spacecraft charging due to the natural plasma environment found in all orbits is known to produce many of the observed spacecraft anomalies and failures. A primary factor in adverse spacecraft charging is the secondary electron emission of differing materials on the spacecraft. Precipitating electrons and ions from the plasma to spacecraft surfaces can result in varying amounts of charge being released, depending on the secondary electron yield of the materials; this can lead to arcing between surfaces. NASA's Space and Environments Effects (SEE) program has recognized the need to improve their current materials database for modeling spacecraft charging and have …

A Compact Rotating-Mirror Autocorrelator Design For Femtosecond And Picosecond Laserpulses, D. Mark Riffe, A. J. Sabbah

All Physics Faculty Publications

An interferometric rapid-scanning autocorrelator employing two antiparallel rotating mirrors in a variable arm is optimized for maximum optical path difference as a function of the separation of the two rotating mirrors. A very compact design (mirror separation≈mirror diameter) is possible without a reduction in the maximum pulse width that can be measured.

Physisorbed Co On Ionic Crystals: An Extended Beg Spin-Lattice Model Of Adsorbed Dipolar Molecules, T. E. Burns, Jr Dennison

Journal Articles

The 2D dielectric phases and phase transitions of adsorbed dipolar molecules are studied using a dilute spin-one Ising model. The spin-one formulation assigns a spin S_i = ±1 to a (up/down) dipole occupying a lattice site i adsorbed perpendicular to the substrate surface and Si = 0 to unoccupied sites. We relate the mean field expression for the spin-model interaction energy to a more detailed microscopic model involving dipolar, quadrupolar and dispersive interactions beyond nearest neighbor. Analytic solutions in the mean field approximation are discussed for dipole-orientation order-disorder transitions and ferroelectric-to-antiferroelectric transitions as a function of temperature and …

Quantum Fields At Any Time, Charles G. Torre, Madhavan Varadarajan

All Physics Faculty Publications

The canonical quantum theory of a free field using arbitrary foliations of a flat two-dimensional spacetime is investigated. It is shown that dynamical evolution along arbitrary spacelike foliations is unitarily implemented on the same Fock space as that associated with inertial foliations. It follows that the Schrodinger picture exists for arbitrary foliations as a unitary image of the Heisenberg picture for the theory. An explicit construction of the Schrodinger picture image of the Heisenberg Fock space states is provided. The results presented here can be interpreted in terms of a Dirac constraint quantization of parametrized field theory. In particular, it …

Intercomparison Of Physical Models And Observations Of The Ionosphere, D. N. Anderson, M. J. Buonsanto, M. Codrescu, D. Decker, C. G. Fesen, T. J. Fuller-Rowell, B. W. Reinisch, P. G. Richards, R. G. Roble, Robert W. Schunk, Jan Josef Sojka

All Physics Faculty Publications

Five physical models of the ionosphere were compared with each other and with data obtained at the Millstone Hill Observatory. Two of the models were self-consistent ionosphere-thermosphere models, while for the other ionospheric models the thermospheric parameters were provided by empirical inputs. The comparisons were restricted to midlatitudes and low geomagnetic activity, but four geophysical cases were considered that covered both the summer and winter solstices at solar maximum and minimum. The original motivation of the study was to determine why several physical models consistently underestimated the F region peak electron density, by up to a factor of 2, in …

Interdisciplinary Scientists Gather For Plasma Structure Workshop, Jan Josef Sojka

All Physics Faculty Publications

Two of the most exciting papers presented at the Third Peaceful Valley Workshop were on the nature of plasma structure found in the nighttime midlatitude E and F regions. The first was from a coordinated rocket campaign called Sporadic E Experiment over Kyushu (SEEK) dedicated to the understanding of puzzling quasi-periodic radar echoes that have been detected in association with sporadic E layers. In-situ probes on two rockets measured localized electric fields as large as 20 mV/m, confirming theoretical predictions of strong polarization processes that may result from wavelike distortions imposed on normally stratified sporadic E layers. An unexpected result …

Ionospheric Storm Simulations Driven By Magnetospheric Mhd And Empirical Models With Data Comparisons, Jan Josef Sojka, Robert W. Schunk, M. D. Bowline, J. Chen, S. Slinker, J. Fedder, P. J. Sultan

All Physics Faculty Publications

The results of two ionospheric simulations are compared with each other and with ionospheric observations of the southern hemisphere for the magnetic cloud passage event of January 14, 1988. For most of the event one simulation agrees with observations, while the other does not. Electric fields and electron precipitation patterns generated by a magnetospheric MHD model are used as inputs to a physical model of the ionosphere in the successful simulation, while empirical electric fields and electron precipitation are used as the inputs for the second simulation. In spite of ionospheric summer conditions a large and deep polar hole is …

Gradient Drift Instability Growth Rates From Global-Scale Modeling Of The Polar Ionosphere, Jan Josef Sojka, M. V. Subramanium, L. Zhu, Robert W. Schunk

All Physics Faculty Publications

The winter polar ionosphere, under southward interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) conditions, experiences irregularity development leading to consequences such as scintillation on transionospheric communication links. These irregularities are associated with antisunward convecting polar ionospheric patches. The gradient drift instability (GDI) has been considered a primary candidate for the generation of these irregularities, or at least the long-wavelength energy source of the irregularity-wave cascade process. The Utah State University time-dependent ionospheric model (TDIM) enables the polar cap ionosphere and its patches to be modeled on a large scale in a time-evolving manner. Hence, at each point in space and time, the TDIM …

Dynamical Effects Of Ionospheric Conductivity On The Formation Of Polar Cap Arcs, L. Zhu, Jan Josef Sojka, Robert W. Schunk, D. J. Crain

All Physics Faculty Publications

By using a magnetosphere-ionosphere (M-I) coupling model of polar cap arcs [Zhu et al., 1993], a systematic model study of the effects of ionospheric background conductivity on the formation of polar cap arcs has been conducted. The variations of the ionospheric background conductivity in the model study cover typical ionospheric conditions, including solar minimum, solar maximum, winter, and summer. The simulation results clearly indicate that the ionospheric background conductivity can dynamically affect the mesoscale features of polar cap arcs through a nonlinear M-I coupling process associated with the arcs.

Rayleigh Lidar Measurements Of The Temporal Frequency And Vertical Wavenumber Spectra In The Mesosphere Over The Rocky Mountain Region, X Gao, J W. Meriwether, Vincent B. Wickwar, T D. Wilkerson, S C. Collins

All Physics Faculty Publications

Temporal and spatial spectral analysis techniques were applied to lidar data collected over a period of 18 months above the Rocky Mountain region at an altitude range from 45 to 70 km by a Rayleigh lidar system located in Logan, Utah (41.7°N, 111.8°W). Examination of the averaged temporal frequency F(ω) and vertical wavenumber F(m) spectra showed spectral slope values of −1.49 ± 0.03 and −2.3 ± 0.1, respectively. The observed slope for the overall averaged F(m) spectrum is considerably more positive than the value of −3 predicted by the linear instability theory but close to the …

New Conformal Gauging And The Electromagnetic Theory Of Weyl, James Thomas Wheeler

All Physics Faculty Publications

A new eight-dimensional conformal gauging solves the auxiliary field problem and eliminates unphysical size change from Weyl’s electromagnetic theory. We derive the Maurer–Cartan structure equations and find the zero curvature solutions for the conformal connection. By showing that every one-particle Hamiltonian generates the structure equations we establish a correspondence between phase space and the eight-dimensional base space, and between the action and the integral of the Weyl vector. Applying the correspondence to generic flat solutions yields the Lorentz force law, the form and gauge dependence of the electromagnetic vector potential and minimal coupling. The dynamics found for these flat solutions …

Magnetic Control Of Convection In Nonconducting Paramagnetic Fluids, J. Huang, Boyd F. Edwards, D. D. Gray

All Physics Faculty Publications

An inhomogeneous magnetic field exerts a magnetic body force on magnetically permeable fluids. A recent experiment [D. Braithwaite, E. Beaugnon, and R. Tournier, Nature (London) 354, 134 (1991)] demonstrates that this force can be used to compensate for gravity and to control convection in a paramagnetic solution of gadolinium nitrate. We provide the theory of magnetically controlled convection in a horizontal paramagnetic fluid layer heated from either above or below. Our theoretical predictions agree with the experiments.

Co Physisorbed On Ionic Crystals: An Extended Beg Spin-Lattice Model Of Absorbed Dipolar Molecules, T. E. Burns, John R. Dennison

All Physics Faculty Publications

The 2D dielectric phases and phase transitions of adsorbed dipolar molecules are studied using a dilute spin-one Ising model. The spin-one formulation assigns a spin S_i=±1 to a (up/down) dipole occupying a lattice site I adsorbed perpendicular to the substrate surface and S_i=0 to unoccupied sites. We relate the mean field expression for the spin-model interaction energy to a more detailed microscopic model involving dipolar, quadrupolar and repulsive interactions beyond nearest neighbor. Analytic solutions in the mean field approximation are discussed for dipole-orientation order–disorder transitions and ferroelectric-to-antiferroelectric transitions as a function of temperature and coverage. The …

Utah State University Ground-Based Test Facility For Study Ofelectronic Properties Of Spacecraft Materials, W. Y. Chang, John R. Dennison, Neal Nickles, R. E. Davies

All Physics Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Effects Of The Evolution Of Spacecraft Surfaces On Secondary Electron Emission Andspacecraft Charging, R. E. Davies, John R. Dennison

All Physics Faculty Publications

Spacecraft charging due to the natural plasma environment found in all orbits is known to produce many of the observed spacecraft anomalies and failures. A primary factor in adverse spacecraft charging is the secondary electron emission of differing materials on the spacecraft. Precipitating electrons and ions from the plasma to spacecraft surfaces can result in varying amounts of charge being released, depending on the secondary electron yield of the materials; this can lead to arcing between surfaces. NASA's Space and Environments Effects (SEE) program has recognized the need to improve their current materials database for modeling spacecraft charging and have …

Evolution Of Secondary Electron Emission Characteristics Of Spacecraft Surfaces: Importance To Spacecraft Charging, R. E. Davies, John R. Dennison

All Physics Faculty Publications

Secondary electron emission (SEE) plays a key role in spacecraft charging [Garrett, 1981; Frooninckx and Sojka, 1992] . As a result, spacecraft charging codes require knowledge of the SEE characteristics of various materials in order to predict vehicle potentials in various orbital environments [Katz, et. al., 1986]. Because SEE is a surface phenomenon, occurring in the first few atomic layers of a material, the SEE characteristics of a given surface are extremely sensitive to changes in surface condition—e.g., the addition or removal of surface contaminants, or changes in surface morphology. That spacecraft surfaces can and generally do undergo significant evolution …