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- Castello Lucco, Federico
(författare)
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Bridge functions in strongly coupled plasmas : theory, simulations and applications
- 2021
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Strongly coupled or non-ideal plasmas are multi-component charged systems in which at least one species possesses an average interaction energy that is comparable or larger than its thermal energy. Non-ideal plasmas are naturally occurring in dense astrophysical objects (e.g. giant planet interiors) but also engineered in the laboratory (e.g. plasma discharges seeded with solid particulates). They are typically encountered in the liquid state, whose theoretical description is particularly challenging due to the lack of small parameters. This thesis is focused on the development of a novel theoretical approach for the accurate calculation of the structural and thermodynamic properties of plasma liquids. Apart from their inherent significance, these properties also constitute necessary input to advanced theories of dynamical correlations, collective excitations and transport coefficients. The theoretical approach is based on the integral equation theory framework, whose central quantity is the bridge function; an abstract object of diagrammatic analysis that is impossible to calculate or even approximate through virial-type expansions. Here the bridge function is accurately determined by combining elements of the isomorph theory of R-simple liquids with indirect extractions from computer simulations. The unprecedented level of accuracy in both the structural and thermodynamic properties and the very low computational cost, render the approach the most efficient alternative to computer simulations of classical and quantum plasma liquids. Applications to collective modes and metastable properties are also discussed.
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- Thorén, Emil
(författare)
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Modelling of macroscopic melt motion in fusion devices
- 2020
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Magnetic confinement fusion is one of the most well developed methods envisioned to achieve thermonuclear fusion energy in the future. A central obstacle that remains in the way of safe and sustainable reactor operation is the interaction that occurs between the plasma and vessel wall components. Lengthy or intense plasma exposures will lead to surface erosion or plasma pollution. Metal plasma-facing components can melt, in which case the liquid is subsequently displaced by various accelerating forces resulting to macroscopic surface deformation, which will ultimately decrease the functionality and lifetime of the armour. Experiments have been performed in numerous contemporary tokamaks in order to elucidate the various processes behind wall heating, metal melting, and surface deformation. Combined with numerical tools, these provide the framework for predictive studies and conclusions for the armour effectiveness in future tokamaks ITER and DEMO.This thesis is focused on one such numerical tool: MEMOS-U, a heat transfer and fluid motion code that was developed specifically to model macroscopic surface deformation in magnetic confinement devices. The code employs the shallow water approximation of the Navier-Stokes equations, which drastically reduces the computational cost and enables multi-timescale simulations over large exposed areas. A detailed overview of the theoretical framework and numerical implementation of the code is provided, followed by results from benchmarking activities with various melt experiments as well as predictive studies for ITER. Model limitations are also discussed.
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- Tolias, Panagiotis, 1984-
(författare)
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The Klimontovich description of complex plasma systems : Low frequency electrostatic modes, spectral densities of fluctuations and collision integrals
- 2012
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Plasmas seeded with solid particulates of nanometer to micron sizes (complex plasma systems) are a ubiquitous feature of intergalactic, interstellar and planetary environments but also of plasma processing applications or even fusion devices. Their novel aspects compared with ideal multi-component plasmas stem from (i) the large number of elementary charges residing on the grain surface, (ii) the variability of the charge over mass ratio of the dust component, (iii) the inherent openness and dissipative nature of such systems. Their statistical description presents a major challenge; On one hand by treating dust grains as point particles new phase space variables must be introduced augmenting the classical Hamiltonian phase space, while the microphysics of interaction between the plasma and the grains will introduce additional coupling between the kinetic equations of each species, apart from the usual fine-grained electromagnetic field coupling. On the other hand complex plasma systems do not always exist in a gaseous state but can also condensate, i.e. form liquid, solid or crystalline states. In this thesis we study gaseous partially ionized complex plasma systems from the perspective of the Klimontovich technique of second quantization in phase space. Initially, in regimes typical of dust dynamics. Starting from the Klimontovich equations for the exact phase space densities, theory deliverables such as the permittivity, the spectral densities of fluctuations and the collision integrals are implemented either for concrete predictions related to low frequency electrostatic waves or for diagnostic purposes related to the enhancement of the ion density and electrostatic potential fluctuation spectra due to the presence of dust grains. Particular emphasis is put to the comparison of the self-consistent kinetic model with multi-component kinetic models (treating dust as an additional massive charged species) as well as to the importance of the nature of the plasma particle source. Finally, a new kinetic model of complex plasmas (for both constant and fluctuating sources) is formulated. It is valid in regimes typical of ion dynamics, where plasma discreteness can no longer be neglected, and, in contrast to earlier models, does not require relatively large dust densities to be valid.
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