Neste trabalho o formalismo semi-clássico convergente sugerido por Cattani é desenvolvido para calcular o alargamento e deslocamento provocado por colisões eletrônicas de linhas espectrais de átomos neutros em plasmas . Para testar o referido formalismo calculamos a largura e o deslocamento de muitas linhas espectrais do hélio neutro em plasmas com temperaturas que vão desde 5000 até 40000K e densidades eletrônicas que variam de 10 POT. -15 até 10 POT. -18cm POT. -3. Efeitos de \"screening\" de Debye e trajetória não retilínea dos elétrons são levados em conta no formalismo. Um estudo sobre a contribuição das colisões iônicas para o alargamento e deslocamento desenvolvido para elétrons e as aproximações quase estática de Griem e adiabática de Barnard, Cooper e Smith, e Griem, Baranger, Kolb e Oertel. Os alargamentos e deslocamentos calculados são comparados com resultados experimentais obtidos por Wulff, Berg e colaboradores, Kelleher e Diatta e teóricos previstos por Griem e Sahal-Bréchot. / n this work the semiclassical convergent formalism suggested by Cattani is developed to calculate the broadening and shift of spectral lines produced by electronic collisions of neutral atoms in plasmas. To test this theory we calculate the widths and shifts of many spectral lines of neutral helium in plasmas with temperatures that goes from 5000 up to 40000 K and electronic densities in the range of 10 POT. -15 até 10 POT. -18cm POT. -3. Effects of Debye screening and non straight line trajectory are taken into account in our approach. To study the ionic collisional contribution to the widths and shifts we use the same convergent treatment developed for electrons and the quasi-static approximation of Griem and adiabatic approximation of Barnard, Cooper and Smith, and Griem, Baranger, Kolb and Oertel. The calculated widths and shifts are compared with experimental results obtained by Wulff, Berg and collaborators, Kelleher and Diatta and theoretical predictions of Griem and Sahal-Bréchot.

<p> This dissertation encompasses experimental and theoretical studies on two cornerstones of modern nonlinear optics: laser filamentation and harmonic generation. Laser filaments are self-guided light structures balanced by Kerr self-focusing and diffraction/plasma defocusing, enabling applications in lightning guiding, long-range spectroscopy, and high-precision laser weapons. Harmonic generation is a nonlinear process that up-converts optical frequencies, and it is a promising source of table-top, ultrashort X-ray/UV radiation. </p><p> The goal of this work is two-fold: control and visualization of nonlinear optical phenomena. First, variable focusing geometries are used to eliminate high-power laser multifilamentation, which is a stochastic process that is notoriously difficult to control. Next, two-color pump-probe experimental schemes are used to enhance third-harmonic generation in air by several orders of magnitude. Our experimental results agree well with calculations based on state-of-the-art unidirectional pulse propagation equations, which give insight into the physical mechanisms underlying our experimental findings. An overarching theme of this work is ultrafast visualization: by combining femtosecond-time-resolved pump-probe methods with advanced quantitative phase microscopy, we can visualize and quantitatively characterize dynamically-evolving micro-structures during various nonlinear laser-matter interactions. Finally, this work will describe some novel properties of mid-infrared and long-wavelength infrared ultrashort pulse propagation, with a focus on the generation of light bullets, which represent a holy grail of nonlinear optics.</p><p>

Este trabalho procura caracterizar uma cavidade eletromagnetica ressonante toroidal teorica e experimentalmente. Do ponto de vista teorico, foi obtida a relacao de dispersao para as autofrequencias da cavidade, resolvendo as equacoes de maxwell usando teoria de perturbacao. Duas solucoes em ordem zero foram obtidas: uma em termos de funcoes hipergeometricas e outra em termos de uma serie de frobenius. Os resultados foram comparados com a literatura. Baseados nestes autovalores calculados, foi projetado e construido um toroide em cobre, com seccao transversal circular e razao de aspecto 1,25 (\'R IND.0\'=0.125m e \'R IND.0\'=0.100m). As medidas experimentais realizadas incluem as autofrequencias e seus respectivos indices de merito. Pelo que se sabe, estas medidas foram as primeiras feitas num toroide. Os dados experimentais tambem foram comparados com os resultados teoricos, permitindo estabelecer qual dos tratamentos e mais compativel com a realidade e fornecendo elementos para um aprimoramento da teoria / Electromagnetic resonance in toroidal cavities - theory and experience

Neste trabalho o formalismo semi-clássico convergente sugerido por Cattani é desenvolvido para calcular o alargamento e deslocamento provocado por colisões eletrônicas de linhas espectrais de átomos neutros em plasmas . Para testar o referido formalismo calculamos a largura e o deslocamento de muitas linhas espectrais do hélio neutro em plasmas com temperaturas que vão desde 5000 até 40000K e densidades eletrônicas que variam de 10 POT. -15 até 10 POT. -18cm POT. -3. Efeitos de \"screening\" de Debye e trajetória não retilínea dos elétrons são levados em conta no formalismo. Um estudo sobre a contribuição das colisões iônicas para o alargamento e deslocamento desenvolvido para elétrons e as aproximações quase estática de Griem e adiabática de Barnard, Cooper e Smith, e Griem, Baranger, Kolb e Oertel. Os alargamentos e deslocamentos calculados são comparados com resultados experimentais obtidos por Wulff, Berg e colaboradores, Kelleher e Diatta e teóricos previstos por Griem e Sahal-Bréchot. / n this work the semiclassical convergent formalism suggested by Cattani is developed to calculate the broadening and shift of spectral lines produced by electronic collisions of neutral atoms in plasmas. To test this theory we calculate the widths and shifts of many spectral lines of neutral helium in plasmas with temperatures that goes from 5000 up to 40000 K and electronic densities in the range of 10 POT. -15 até 10 POT. -18cm POT. -3. Effects of Debye screening and non straight line trajectory are taken into account in our approach. To study the ionic collisional contribution to the widths and shifts we use the same convergent treatment developed for electrons and the quasi-static approximation of Griem and adiabatic approximation of Barnard, Cooper and Smith, and Griem, Baranger, Kolb and Oertel. The calculated widths and shifts are compared with experimental results obtained by Wulff, Berg and collaborators, Kelleher and Diatta and theoretical predictions of Griem and Sahal-Bréchot.

Thermonuclear fusion has potential to offer an economically, environmentally and socially acceptable supply of energy. A promising reactor design to execute thermonuclear fusion is the toroidal magnetic confinement device, tokamak. The tokamak still faces challenges in the major areas which can be categorised into confinement, heating and fusion technology. This thesis addresses the problem of confinement, in particular the role of transport along magnetic field lines perturbed by diverse MHD instabilities. Unstable modes such as ideal ballooning-peeling, tearing etc., break closed magnetic surfaces and destroy the axisymmetry of the magnetic configuration in a tokamak, providing deviation of magnetic field lines from unperturbed magnetic surfaces. Radial gradients of plasma parameters have nonzero projections along such lines and drive parallel particle and heat flows which contribute to the radial transport. Such transport can significantly affect confinement as this takes place by the development of neoclassical tearing modes (NTMs) in the core and edge localised modes (ELMs) at the plasma periphery. In this thesis, transport of heat through non-overlapped magnetic island chains is first investigated using the 'Optimal path' approach, which is based on the principal of minimum entropy production. This model shows how the effective heat conduction through islands increases with parallel heat conduction and with the perturbation level. A more standard analytical approach for the limit cases of "small" and "large" islands is also presented. Transport of heat through internally heated magnetic islands is next investigated by further development of the 'Optimal path' method. In addition the approach by R. Fitzpatrick, has been extended for this investigation. By application of these approaches to experimental observations made at TEXTOR tokamak, heat flux limit, limiting parallel heat conduction in low collisional plasmas, is elucidated. Models to study transport of heat and particles due to ELMs have also been developed. Energy losses during ELMs have been estimated considering contribution from parallel conduction due to electrons and parallel convection of ions, with constant level of the magnetic field perturbation, steady profiles for density and temperature, and by accounting for the heat flux limit. The estimate shows good agreement with experimental observations. The model is developed further by accounting for the time evolution of the perturbation level due to ballooning mode, and of density and temperature profiles.

<p> We report the observation of a net inward, up-gradient turbulent particle flux which occurs when a collisional drift waves generate a sufficiently strong radially sheared azimuthal zonal flow in a cylindrical magnetized plasma. At low magnetic fields (B&le;1.0 kG), particle transport is outward at all radii. As the magnetic field is further increased to 1200G, an up-gradient inward particle flux develops between the peak of the velocity shear and the maximum density gradient. The mean density gradient is also observed to steepen in response to this inward flux. Time-domain and bispectral Fourier domain analysis shows that at the peak of the velocity shear, where the particle flux is outward, the turbulent Reynolds stress acts to reinforce the shear flow. In contrast, in the region of the inward particle flux, the zonal flow drives the fluctuations, and a transient increase in the shearing rate is occurs prior to an increase in the magnitude of the inward flux. The results suggest a hypothesis in which the shear flow is responsible for the up-gradient particle flux and the corresponding steepening in the mean density gradient. However, a linear instability analyses using experimentally measured density and E&times;B flow profiles in a linear, modified Hasegawa-Wakatani theory model with the coupled potential and density fluctuations failed to reproduce the essential elements of our experimental observations, suggesting some other mechanism is responsible for the inward flux. We summarize recent new experimental results which point towards the possible role of finite ion temperature gradient effects, possibly combined with parallel flow shear, in driving up-gradient particle flux.</p>

Kinetic microinstabilities in the solar wind arise when its non-thermal properties become too extreme. This thesis project focused specifically on the four instabilities associated with ion temperature anisotropy: the cyclotron, mirror, and parallel and oblique firehose instabilities. Numerous studies have provided evidence that proton temperature anisotropy in the solar wind is limited by the actions of these instabilities. For this project, a fully revised analysis of data from the Wind spacecraft's Faraday cups and calculations from linear Vlasov theory were used to extend these findings in two respects. First, theoretical thresholds were derived for the \(\alpha\)-particle temperature anisotropy instabilities, which were then found to be consistent with a statistical analysis of Wind \(\alpha\)-particle data. This suggests that \(\alpha\)-particles, which constitute only about 5% of ions in the solar wind, are nevertheless able to drive temperature anisotropy instabilities. Second, a statistical analysis of Wind proton data found that proton temperature was significantly enhanced in plasma unstable due to proton temperature anisotropy. This implies that extreme proton temperature anisotropies in solar wind at 1 AU arise from ongoing anisotropic heating (versus cooling from, e.g., CGL double adiabatic expansion). Together, these results provide further insight into the complex evolution of the solar wind's non-fluid properties. / Astronomy

The report contained herein is a statistical analysis of electron temperatures withinTitan’s lower ionosphere. Electron temperatures in this altitudinal range are of greatimport for researchers. The main contributing factors are investigated to see whatphysical processes are the sources of variability in electron temperatures. Oneimportant result from this analysis lends itself to determining recombinationcoefficients thus determining organic process rates occurring within Titan’satmosphere. To accomplish this analysis, data from the Langmuir probe aboard the Cassini craft isutilized. The Langmuir probe is an instrument which can be used to measure currentdifferences in a plasma environment. From this, plasma properties such astemperature, density, and velocity can be calculated. It was named after IrvingLangmuir, whose theories became the basis for Orbit Motion Limited theory. Of the possible factors that determine the variation in electron temperatures, altitudewas the most evident and largest contributor. Once the data had been reduced toremove the effect of altitude on the temperature, other factors such as latitude, solarzenith angle, and ram angle were investigated to ascertain which, if any, wasresponsible for variations in temperature. Upon completion of the analysis, it waslearned that ram angle also had an identifiable effect upon electron temperatures. This effect was further investigated to ensure confidence in the results. Thecompletion of this part of the analysis showed that the effect shown with respect toram angle was indeed reproducible and that no other investigated factor had a majoreffect on electron temperatures. After the confidence procedure was completed,several previous studies findings were confirmed. These confirmed results include therelation of solar zenith angle with respect to both electron temperature distributionand density distribution, as well as a possible confirmation relating temperature anddensity for electrons.n/

<p> Tokamaks use magnetic fields to confine plasmas to achieve fusion; they are the leading approach proposed for the widespread production of fusion energy. The sawtooth crash in tokamaks limits the core temperature, adversely impacts confinement, and seeds disruptions. Adequate knowledge of the physics governing the sawtooth crash and a predictive capability of its ramifications has been elusive, including an understanding of incomplete reconnection, i.e., why sawteeth often cease prematurely before processing all available magnetic flux. In this dissertation, we introduce a model for incomplete reconnection in sawtooth crashes resulting from increasing diamagnetic effects in the nonlinear phase of magnetic reconnection. Physically, the reconnection inflow self-consistently convects the high pressure core of a tokamak toward the <i>q</i>=1 rational surface, thereby increasing the pressure gradient at the reconnection site. If the pressure gradient at the rational surface becomes large enough due to the self-consistent evolution, incomplete reconnection will occur due to diamagnetic effects becoming large enough to suppress reconnection. Predictions of this model are borne out in large-scale proof-of-principle two-fluid simulations of reconnection in a 2D slab geometry and are also consistent with data from the Mega Ampere Spherical Tokamak (MAST). Additionally, we present simulations from the 3D extended-MHD code M3D-C¹ used to study the sawtooth crash in a 3D toroidal geometry for resistive-MHD and two-fluid models. This is the first study in a 3D tokamak geometry to show that the inclusion of two-fluid physics in the model equations is essential for recovering timescales more closely in line with experimental results compared to resistive-MHD and contrast the dynamics in the two models. We use a novel approach to sample the data in the plane of reconnection perpendicular to the <i>(m,n)</i>=(1,1) mode to carefully assess the reconnection physics. Using local measures of reconnection, we find that it is much faster in the two-fluid simulations, consistent with expectations based on global measures. By sampling data in the reconnection plane, we present the first observation of the quadrupole out-of-plane magnetic field appearing during sawtooth reconnection with the Hall term. We also explore how reconnection as viewed in the reconnection plane varies toroidally, which affects the symmetry of the reconnection geometry and the local diamagnetic effects. We expect our results to be useful for transport modeling in tokamaks, predicting energetic alpha-particle confinement, and assessing how sawteeth trigger disruptions. Since the model only depends on local diamagnetic and reconnection physics, it is machine independent, and should apply both to existing tokamaks and future ones such as ITER.</p>

<p> Magnetic fields at all scales are prevalent in our universe. However, current cosmological models predict that initially the universe was bereft of large-scale fields. Standard magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) does not permit magnetogenesis; in the MHD Faraday&rsquo;s law, the change in magnetic field <i> B</i> depends on <i>B</i> itself. Thus if <i> B</i> is initially zero, it will remain zero for all time. A more accurate physical model is needed to explain the origins of the galactic-scale magnetic fields observed today. In this thesis, I explore two velocity-driven mechanisms for magnetogenesis in 2-fluid plasma. The first is a novel kinematic &lsquo;battery&rsquo; arising from convection of vorticity. A coupling between thermal and plasma oscillations, this non-relativistic mechanism can operate in flows that are incompressible, quasi-neutral and barotropic. The second mechanism results from inclusion of thermal effects in relativistic shear flow instabilities. In such flows, parallel perturbations are ubiquitously unstable at small scales, with growth rates of order with the plasma frequency over a defined range of parameter-space. Of these two processes, instabilities seem far more likely to account for galactic magnetic fields. Stable kinematic effects will, at best, be comparable to an ideal Biermann battery, which is suspected to be orders of magnitude too weak to produce the observed galactic fields. On the other hand, instabilities grow until saturation is reached, a topic that has yet to be explored in detail on cosmological scales. In addition to investigating these magnetogenesis sources, I derive a general dispersion relation for three dimensional, warm, two species plasma with discontinuous shear flow. The mathematics of relativistic plasma, sheared-flow instability and the Biermann battery are also discussed.</p>