Plasmas and fluids

Physics through the 1990s 1
Copyright 2
Preface 9
Contents 11
1 Introduction and Executive Summary 19
GENERAL FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 19
Findings 19
Recommendations 20
INTRODUCTION 21
The Emergence of Plasma Physics 21
Classification of Plasmas 24
Fluid Physics 26
PRINCIPAL FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 28
General Plasma Physics 28
Fusion Plasma Confinement and Heating 29
MAGNETIC CONFINEMENT 29
INERTIAL CONFINEMENT 31
Space and Astrophysical Plasmas 32
Fluid Physics 34
RECENT ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND FUTURE RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES 36
General Plasma Physics 36
Significant Recent Accomplishments 36
Future Research Opportunities 37
Fusion Plasma Confinement and Heating 38
Significant Recent Accomplishments\u2014Magnetic Confinement 38
Future Research Opportunities\u2014Magnetic Confinement 40
Significant Recent Accomplishments\u2014Inertial Confinement 42
Future Research Opportunities\u2014Inertial Confinement 43
Space and Astrophysical Plasmas 44
Significant Recent Accomplishments 44
Future Research Opportunities 45
Fluid Physics 46
Significant Recent Accomplishments 46
Future Research Opportunities 48
FUNDING AND MANPOWER RESOURCES 50
INSTITUTIONAL INVOLVEMENT 50
General Plasma Physics 50
Plasma Confinement and Heating 51
Space and Astrophysical Plasmas 52
Fluid Physics 53
2 Fluid Physics 54
INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW 54
SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES IN FLUID PHYSICS 56
Significant Recent Accomplishments 56
Significant Research Opportunities 58
FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 60
Principal Findings 60
Support Structure 60
Computational Techniques 61
Instrumentation Techniques 61
Education 61
Principal Recommendations 62
Research Support 62
Education 63
GOVERNMENT SUPPORT, MANPOWER, AND UNIVERSITY RESEARCH 63
DETAILED REVIEW OF THE BRANCHES, SELECTED TOPICAL SUBJECT AREAS, AND TECHNICAL DISCIPLINES OF FLUID-PHYSICS RESEARCH 66
Branches of Fluid Physics 66
Combustion and Reacting Flows 66
Non-Newtonian Fluids and Rheology 69
Vortex-Dominated Flows 71
Disturbance of Initially Rotational Fields 71
Vortex Fields Generated by Highly Loaded Wings and Bodies 72
Geophysical Flows 72
Contained Vortices 73
High-Speed Flows 73
Molecular and Statistical Phenomena 74
Viscosity-Dominated Flows 75
Stability 78
Turbulence 80
Buoyancy-Driven Motion 84
Convection in Nature 84
Suspended Particles 85
Gravity Currents 85
Convection in Materials Processes 85
Interface Phenomena 85
Deformation and Breakup of Small Drops in Shear Flows 86
Breaking of Waves 86
Sediment Transport 86
Solitons 86
Spreading of Liquids on Solid Surfaces 87
Air-Sea Interaction 87
Sound Generation and Propagation 87
Radiation Hydrodynamics 88
Porous Media 90
Rotating Phenomena 91
Turbomachinery Flows 91
The Circulation of the Atmosphere and Oceans 92
Phase Change 92
Technological Applications 92
Nonequilibrium Evaporation and Condensation 93
Geophysical Flows 94
Topical Subject Areas 94
Aerodynamics 94
Biofluid Dynamics 99
Flows of Electrically Conducting Fluids 101
Geophysical Fluid Dynamics 102
Multiphase Flows 104
Technical Disciplines 106
Modeling and Analytical Methods 106
Computational Fluid Dynamics 107
Experimental Methods 109
Instrumentation 109
Flow Facilities 111
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 112
3 General Plasma Physics 113
SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES OF GENERAL PLASMA PHYSICS 113
INTENSE BEAMS\u2014ELECTRONS, IONS, AND PHOTONS 115
Development of Low-Impedance Multiterawatt Machines 116
Intense Ion Beams 116
Development of High-Energy, High-Current Machines 117
Z-Pinch X-Ray Sources 117
Propagation of Charged-Particle Beams in Gas and Plasma 117
Expectations and Recommendations for the next 10 Years 118
COLLECTIVE ACCELERATORS 119
Space-Charge Accelerators 120
Wave Accelerators 120
Electron-Ring Accelerators 120
Collective Focusing Accelerators 121
LASER-DRIVEN ACCELERATORS 121
Beat-Wave Accelerator 122
Inverse Free-Electron-Laser Accelerator 123
Grating Accelerator 123
High-Gradient Structures 123
Inverse Cerenkov Accelerator 123
Cyclotron Resonant Accelerator 123
Problem Areas 124
Recommendations for the Next 10 Years 124
COHERENT, FREE-ELECTRON RADIATION SOURCES 125
ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVE-PLASMA INTERACTION 129
Scattering and Absorption of Electromagnetic Waves by Plasmas 129
Isotope Separation 132
NONLINEAR PHENOMENA IN PLASMAS 134
Chaos in Hamiltonian Systems 134
Soliton and Related Phenomena 135
Strong Langmuir Turbulence 136
Parametric Instabilities 136
Magnetic Reconnection 136
Turbulent Relaxation to Force-Free States 137
Other Major Achievements in the Past Decade 138
PLASMA THEORY DEVELOPMENTS RELATED TO MAGNETIC CONFINEMENT 138
Magnetic-Flux Geometries and Coordinate Systems 139
Single-Particle Orbits 139
Coulomb Collisional Processes 140
Macroscopic Equilibria 140
Macroscopic Instabilities\u2014Ideal Magnetohydrodynamics 140
Macroscopic Instabilities\u2014Resistive Magnetohydrodynamics 141
Microscopic (Kinetic) Instabilities and Turbulent Transport 141
Summary 142
ATOMIC PHYSICS IN (AND FOR) PLASMAS 142
Recent Progress 143
Outstanding Research Problems 144
Recommendations 144
Training 145
Funding Levels 146
Recommended Funding Levels 146
PLASMA DIAGNOSTICS 146
Laser Scattering 148
Microwave Interferometry 148
Spectroscopy 148
Charge Exchange 149
Neutrons and Alpha Particles 149
Blackbody and Plasma-Well Interactions 150
Heavy-Ion Diagnostics 150
Time-Resolved Plasma Activity 150
Scattering from Collective Fluctuations 151
Data Acquisition and Instrumentation 151
Desiderata 152
STRONGLY COUPLED PLASMA PHYSICS 154
History 154
Recent Progress 156
Outlook for the Next 10 Years 157
NONNEUTRAL PLASMAS 158
4 Fusion Plasma Confinement and Heating 162
SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES OF FUSION PLASMA RESEARCH 162
Introduction 162
The Fusion Process 164
Magnetic Confinement 168
Inertial Confinement 172
TOKAMAK AND STELLARATOR MAGNETIC-CONFINEMENT SYSTEMS 174
Introduction 174
Major Advances 179
Optimization of Experimental Performance 179
Confinement 181
Stability and Beta Limits 184
Current Frontiers of Research 186
Prospects for Future Advances 189
MAGNETIC MIRROR SYSTEMS 190
Introduction 190
Major Advances\u2014the Tandem Mirror 192
Current Frontiers of Research 194
Microstability 195
Axial Confinement: Control of the Potential Profile and Thermal Barriers 196
Macrostability: Equilibrium and Beta Limits 199
Radial Confinement: Particle Transport and Radial Potential Control 201
Prospects for Future Advances in Mirror Confinement 202
ELMO BUMPY TORUS 203
Introduction 203
Major Advances 205
Current Frontiers of Research 206
Prospects for Future Advances 207
REVERSED-FIELD PINCH 208
Introduction 208
Major Advances 210
Current Frontiers of Research 211
Prospects for Future Advances 212
COMPACT TOROIDS 213
Introduction 213
Major Advances 216
Spheromaks 217
Field-Reversed Configurations 219
Current Frontiers of Research 219
PROSPECTS FOR FUTURE ADVANCES 221
PLASMA HEATING 222
Introduction 222
Radio-Frequency Heating 222
Major Advances: Theory 224
Major Advances: Experiment 225
Prospects for Future Advances 228
Radio-Frequency Current Drive 230
Major Advances: Theory 231
Major Advances: Experiment 231
Prospects for Future Advances 234
Neutral-Beam Heating 234
Major Advances 235
Prospects For Future Advances 237
INERTIAL-CONFINEMENT FUSION SYSTEMS 239
Introduction 239
Major Advances 242
Drivers For Inertial-Confinement Fusion 242
Laser-Target Physics 244
Current Frontiers of Research 246
Laser-Plasma Coupling 246
Heat Transport and Ablation 249
Shell Acceleration, Uniformity, and Hydrodynamic Instabilities 251
Prospects for Future Advances 253
ADVANCED FUSION APPLICATIONS 254
FUNDING OF FUSION PLASMA RESEARCH IN THE UNITED STATES 256
PRINCIPAL FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 258
Magnetic Confinement 258
Inertial Confinement 259
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 260
5 Space And Astrophysical Plasmas 261
PRINCIPAL CONCLUSIONS 261
PRINCIPAL RECOMMENDATIONS 262
INTRODUCTION 263
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LABORATORY, SPACE, AND ASTROPHYSICAL PLASMA RESEARCH 264
Definition of Space and Astrophysical Plasma Physics 264
Relationship Between Laboratory and Space Plasma Physics 264
Relationship Between Space and Astrophysical Plasma Research 265
Magnetohydrodynamic Atmospheres and Winds 266
Planetary and Astrophysical Magnetospheres 267
Magnetic-Field Reconnection 270
Particle Acceleration and Cosmic Rays 272
The Unifying Physical Problems 273
SPACE AND ASTROPHYSICAL PLASMA PHYSICS IN THE PAST 10 YEARS 273
Problem 3: The Behavior of Large-Scale Plasma Flows 274
Planetary Magnetospheres 274
Dynamics of the Earth's Magnetosphere 274
Magnetohydrodynamic Structures in the Sun's Atmosphere and in the Solar Wind 274
Magnetospheres of Neutron Stars 275
Magnetohydrodynamic Jets 275
General Relativistic Electrodynamics 277
Problem 1: Reconnection 277
Problem 2: Interaction of Turbulence with Magnetic Fields 277
Problem 4: Acceleration of Energetic Particles 278
Problem 5: Particle Confinement and Transport 279
Problem 6: Collisionless Shocks 279
Problem 7: Beam-Plasma Interactions, and the Generation of Radio Emissions 280
Problem 8: Interactions Between Plasmas and Neutral Gases 280
SPACE AND ASTROPHYSICAL PLASMA PHYSICS IN THE NEXT 10 YEARS 281
IMPACT OF RESEARCH ON SPACE AND ASTROPHYSICAL PLASMAS 282
THE ROLE OF SPACE AND GROUND-BASED MEASUREMENTS AND OBSERVATIONS 284
Solar-System Plasma Physics 284
Astrophysical Plasma Physics 285
In Situ Measurements near the Sun 286
Concluding Remarks 287
THE ROLES OF LABORATORY AND ACTIVE SPACE EXPERIMENTS 287
Laboratory Experiments 287
Active Space Experiments 288
THE ROLE OF THEORY 289
Space Plasma Theory 289
Theoretical Astrophysics 290
THE ROLE OF NUMERICAL MODELS AND SIMULATIONS 291
Why Quantitative Models Are Essential 291
System Models and Process Simulations in the Next Decade 293
System Models 293
Process Simulations 294
Overall Conclusions 295
Proposal for a Dedicated, Advanced Computational Program 296
THE ROLE OF PLASMA PHYSICS IN THE UNIVERSITY CURRICULUM 297
Space Plasma Physics 297
Astrophysical Plasma Physics 298
Plasma Physics in General 299
REFERENCES 300
Glossary A 301
Index 325