Progress in direct-drive inertial confinement fusion research at the laboratory for laser energetics

Direct-drive inertial confinement fusion (ICF) is expected to demonstrate high gain on the National Ignition Facility (NIF) in the next decade and is a leading candidate for inertial fusion energy production. The demonstration of high areal densities in hydrodynamically scaled cryogenic DT or D₂ implosions with neutron yields that are a significant fraction of the “clean” 1-D predictions will validate the ignition-equivalent direct-drive target performance on the OMEGA laser at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE). This paper highlights the recent experimental and theoretical progress leading toward achieving this validation in the next few years. The NIF will initially be configured for X-ray drive and with no beams placed at the target equator to provide a symmetric irradiation of a direct-drive capsule. LLE is developing the “polar-direct-drive” (PDD) approach that repoints beams toward the target equator. Initial 2-D simulations have shown ignition. A unique “Saturn-like” plastic ring around the equator refracts the laser light incident near the equator toward the target, improving the drive uniformity. LLE is currently constructing the multibeam, 2.6-kJ/beam, petawatt laser system OMEGA EP. Integrated fast-ignition experiments, combining the OMEGA EP and OMEGA Laser Systems, will begin in FY08.     

7Li2分子23Πu激发态的解析势能函数、振动能级及其转动惯量

使用Gaussian03程序包中的“对称性匹配簇-组态相互作用”方法、在0.13—2.0nm的核间距范围内利用6-311 G(d,p)基组对7Li2(23Πu)分子的势能曲线进行了计算,同时使用最小二乘法将计算结果拟合成了解析势能函数.利用拟合出的解析势能函数并结合Rydberg-Klein-Rees方法,计算了该态的谐振频率,进而计算了该态的其他光谱常数,分别为Te=3.6701eV,De=1.0764eV,Re=0.3000nm,ωe=285.69cm-1,ωeχe=1.8351cm-1,αe=0.00942cm-1和Be=0.5340cm-1,其中光谱常数Te,De,Re和ωe的值与文献值相符很好.以得到的解析势能函数为基础,通过求解双原子分子核运动的径向Schr dinger方程,发现J=0时7Li2(23Πu)分子存在67个振动态,求出了相应于每一振动态的振动能级、振动经典转折点及转动惯量.     

3-Sasakian manifolds, 3-cosymplectic manifolds and Darboux theorem

We present a compared analysis of some properties of 3-Sasakian and 3-cosymplectic manifolds. We construct a canonical connection on an almost 3-contact metric manifold which generalises the Tanaka–Webster connection of a contact metric manifold and we use this connection to show that a 3-Sasakian manifold does not admit any Darboux-like coordinate system. Moreover, we prove that any 3-cosymplectic manifold is Ricci-flat and admits a Darboux coordinate system if and only if it is flat.     

Manifold of nondegenerate affinor fields

We consider the quotient set of the set of nondegenerate affinor fields with respect to the action of the group of nowhere vanishing functions. This set is endowed with a structure of infinite-dimensional Lie group. On this Lie group, we construct an object of linear connection with respect to which all left-invariant vector fields are covariantly constant (the Cartan connection).     

Ascoli-Arzelà type theorem for rational iterations on the complex projective plane

For a dominant algebraically stable rational self-map of the complex projective plane of degree at least 2, we will consider three different definitions of the Fatou set and show the equivalence of them (Ascoli-Arzelà type theorem). As a corollary, it follows that all Fatou components are Stein. This is an improvement of an early result by Fornæss and Sibony.

     

Random Perturbations of Canards

We consider the effect of random perturbations on canards. We find the appropriate size of the random perturbations to produce a random selection of a regular duck versus a headless duck. The appropriate limit theorem, in the appropriate topology, is proved. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant Nos. 0305925 and 0604249. The author would also like to thank Professor Jeff Moehlis of the Department of Mechanical and Environmental Engineering at UC Santa Barbara for a number of useful discussions about canards.     

Toda Equations, bi-Hamiltonian Systems, and Compatible Lie Algebroids

We present the bi-Hamiltonian structure of Toda₃, a dynamical system studied by Kupershmidt as a restriction of the discrete KP hierarchy. We derive this structure by a suitable reduction of the set of maps from Z _d to GL(3,R), in the framework of Lie algebroids.     

Invariant manifolds and the stability of traveling waves in scalar viscous conservation laws

The stability of traveling wave solutions of scalar viscous conservation laws is investigated by decomposing perturbations into three components: two far-field components and one near-field component. The linear operators associated to the far-field components are the constant coefficient operators determined by the asymptotic spatial limits of the original operator. Scaling variables can be applied to study the evolution of these components, allowing for the construction of invariant manifolds and the determination of their temporal decay rate. The large time evolution of the near-field component is shown to be governed by that of the far-field components, thus giving it the same temporal decay rate. We also give a discussion of the relationship between this geometric approach and previous results, which demonstrate that the decay rate of perturbations can be increased by requiring that initial data lie in appropriate algebraically weighted spaces.     

On energy functionals, Kähler-Einstein metrics, and the Moser-Trudinger-Onofri neighborhood

We prove that the existence of a Kähler-Einstein metric on a Fano manifold is equivalent to the properness of the energy functionals defined by Bando, Chen, Ding, Mabuchi and Tian on the set of Kähler metrics with positive Ricci curvature. We also prove that these energy functionals are bounded from below on this set if and only if one of them is. This answers two questions raised by X.-X. Chen. As an application, we obtain a new proof of the classical Moser-Trudinger-Onofri inequality on the two-sphere, as well as describe a canonical enlargement of the space of Kähler potentials on which this inequality holds on higher-dimensional Fano Kähler-Einstein manifolds.