Equilibrium, fluctuations, and transport in magnetically controlled plasmas

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Plasma-based material processing and surface modification are critical for microelectronics and other high-tech manufacturing industries. Plasmas are widely used in the growing field of electric plasma propulsion, when the thrust is generated by ionizing gas and ejecting plasmas using electrical power sources (e.g. solar panels). Such devices have become an enabling technology for deep space missions and long-term satellites keeping and maneuvering on near-Earth orbits. Hot plasmas are created in laboratories to imitate Sun conditions and achieve controlled thermonuclear fusion to access the limitless source of clean energy. Practical development of all these systems is enabled by a basic science discipline of plasma physics studying the behavior of an ionised gas such as that naturally present on the Sun, Earth's ionosphere, interplanetary and interstellar space, and created in laboratories. In nature and laboratories, plasmas are often confined and controlled by the magnetic fields making it unstable and turbulent. Turbulence is the result of nonlinear wave interactions resulting in highly irregular and unpredictable behavior. Despite the progress in some applications such as aerodynamics and weather forecasting, turbulence and related anomalous (turbulent) transport remains a great challenge of classical physics. Understanding plasma turbulence is vital for fundamental space physics problems, development of new manufacturing, propulsion, and fusion devices. The proposed theoretical and computational plasma physics research aims to explain and predict the turbulent behavior of magnetically controlled plasmas in the laboratory and technological application plasmas for fusion, material processing, and electric propulsion. Particular systems of interest are plasma devices for electric propulsion such as Hall and magnetic nozzle thrusters, magnetically enhanced plasma sources for material processing, tokamaks, open magnetic mirror, and Z-pinch configurations for fusion applications. The expected outcomes of this research are advanced knowledge of the physics of plasma devices and new modeling tools that will predict plasma behavior and device performance. The long-term objectives are to facilitate the design of new plasma systems for propulsion in space, new plasma systems for the material processing industry, and practical realization of controlled thermonuclear fusion as a clean energy source. This research promotes deep knowledge of physics, analytical and critical analysis, and strong skills in high-performance computations and large data set processing. These skills and expertise are vital to maintaining Canada's competitiveness in science and high technology areas.