Competing mechanisms of plasma transport in inhomogeneous configurations with velocity shear: the solar-wind interaction with earth's magnetosphere

Two-dimensional simulations of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability in an inhomogeneous compressible plasma with a density gradient show that, in a transverse magnetic field configuration, the vortex pairing process and the Rayleigh-Taylor secondary instability compete during the nonlinear evolution of the vortices. Two different regimes exist depending on the value of the density jump across the velocity shear layer. These regimes have different physical signatures that can be crucial for the interpretation of satellite data of the interaction of the solar wind with the magnetospheric plasma.     

Decay of MHD-scale Kelvin-Helmholtz vortices mediated by parasitic electron dynamics

We have simulated nonlinear development of MHD-scale Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) vortices by a two-dimensional two-fluid system including finite electron inertial effects. In the presence of moderate density jump across a shear layer, in striking contrast to MHD results, MHD KH vortices are found to decay by the time one eddy turnover is completed. The decay is mediated by smaller vortices that appear within the parent vortex and stays effective even when the shear layer width is made larger. It is shown that the smaller vortices are basically of MHD nature while the seeding for these is achieved by the electron inertial effect. Application of the results to the magnetotail boundary layer is discussed.     

Numerical evidence of undriven, fast reconnection in the solar-wind interaction with earth's magnetosphere: formation of electromagnetic coherent structures

We give evidence for the first time of the onset of undriven fast, collisionless magnetic reconnection during the evolution of an initially homogeneous magnetic field advected in a sheared velocity field. We consider the interaction of the solar wind with the magnetospheric plasma at low latitude and show that reconnection takes place in the layer between adjacent vortices generated by the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability. This process generates coherent magnetic structures with a size comparable to the ion inertial scale, much smaller than the system dimensions but much larger than the electron inertial scale. These magnetic structures are further advected in the plasma in a complex pattern but remain stable over a time interval much longer than their formation time. These results can be crucial for the interpretation of satellite data showing coherent magnetic structures in the Earth's magnetosheath or the magnetotail.     

黏性各向异性磁流体Kelvin-Helmholtz不稳定性:二维数值研究

利用corner transport upwind和constrained transport算法求解非理想磁流体动力学方程组,对匀强平行磁场作用下,黏性各向异性等离子体自由剪切层中的Kelvin-Helmholtz不稳定性进行了数值模拟.从流动结构、涡结构演化、磁场分布、横向磁压力、抗弯磁张力等角度对各向同性和各向异性黏性算例结果进行了讨论,分析了黏性各向异性对Kelvin-Helmholtz不稳定性的影响.结果表明,黏性各向异性比黏性各向同性更利于流动的稳定.其稳定性作用是由于磁感线方向上剪切速率降低导致界面卷起程度和圈数的降低,并使卷起结构中小涡产生增殖、合并,破坏了涡的常规增长,从而导致流动的稳定.黏性各向异性对横向磁压力的影响比对抗弯磁张力更大.     

Vortex deconfinement in the XY model with a magnetic field

We study vortex unbinding for the classical two-dimensional XY model in a magnetic field on square and triangular lattices. A renormalization group analysis combined with duality in the model shows that at high temperature and high field, the vortices unbind as the magnetic field is lowered in a two-step process: strings of overturned spins first proliferate and then vortices unbind. The transitions are highly continuous but are not of the Kosterlitz-Thouless type. The unbound vortex fixed point is shown to inherit properties of the underlying lattice, in particular containing a set of nodal lines that reflect the lattice symmetry.     

Large-eddy simulation of impinging jets on smooth and rough surfaces

We performed large-eddy simulations (LES) of forced impinging jets over smooth and rough surfaces, containing large-scale, azimuthal vortices generated by the enhanced primary instability in the jet shear layer. The interaction between these vortices and the turbulence in the wall jet that is formed downstream of the impingement region determines their rate of decay. To explore the surface-roughness effects on the evolution of the vortices, sand-grain-like surfaces are generated using uniformly distributed but randomly oriented ellipsoids. The flow is compared to our previous LES of jets impinging on a smooth surface. In spite of the severe modification caused by the roughness on the near-wall flow, the vortex development is not significantly altered. Slightly faster decay of the primary vortices is observed in the rough-wall case compared to the smooth-wall one; the secondary vortex that detaches from the wall and is lifted up has larger vorticity. The highly disturbed near-wall flow is advected outward and affects the evolution of the primary vortex for a longer period during the vortex interaction. The robust turbulent generation mechanism in the outer shear layer, however, mitigates the changes in vortex behaviour. The momentum deficit and the enhancement of turbulence due to the surface roughness play a key role during this process.     

Physics of multiple level hairpin vortex structures in turbulence

Previous experimental and numerical studies have revealed that the hairpin vortex is a basic flow element of transitional boundary layer. The hairpin vortex is believed to have legs, necks and a ring head. Based on our DNS study, the legs and the ring head are generated separately by different mechanisms. The legs function like an engine to generate low speed zones by rotation, create shear layers with surrounding high speed neighbor fluids, and further cause vortex ring formation through shear layer instability. In addition, the ring head is ?-shaped and separated from quasi-streamwise legs from the beginning. Contrary to the classical concept of "vortex breakdown", we believe transition from laminar flow to turbulence is a "buildup" process of multiple level vortical structures. The vortex rings of first level hairpins are mostly responsible for positive spikes, which cause new vorticity rollup, second level vortex leg formation and finally smaller second level vortex ring generation. The third and lower level vortices are generated following the same mechanism. In this paper, the physical process from ?-vortex to multi-level hairpin vortices is described in detail.     

Fast formation of magnetic islands in a plasma in the presence of counterstreaming electrons

With the help of 2D-3V (two dimensional in space and three dimensional in velocity) Vlasov simulations we show that the magnetic field generated by the electromagnetic current filamentation instability develops magnetic islands due to the onset of a fast reconnection process that occurs on the electron dynamical time scale. This process is relevant to magnetic channel coalescence in relativistic laser plasma interactions.     

Out-of-plane shear flow effects on fast magnetic reconnection in a two-dimensional hybrid simulation model

The effects of out-of-plane shear flows on fast magnetic reconnection are numerically investigated by a twodimensional(2D)hybrid model in an initial Harris sheet equilibrium with flows.The equilibrium and driven shear flows out of the 2D reconnection plane with symmetric and antisymmetric profiles respectively are used in the simulation.It is found that the out-of-plane flows with shears in-plane can change the quadrupolar structure of the out-of-plane magnetic field and,therefore,modify the growth rate of magnetic reconnection.Furthermore,the driven flow varying along the anti-parallel magnetic field can either enhance or reduce the reconnection rate as the direction of flow changes.Secondary islands are also generated in the process with converting the initial X-point into an O-point.     

Non-Abrikosov vortices in liquid metallic hydrogen

We consider non-Abrikosov vortex solutions in liquid metallic hydrogen (LMH) in the framework of two-component Ginzburg–Landau model. We have shown that there are three types of non-Abrikosov vortices depending on chosen boundary conditions at the core of vortices, namely, Neumann (N)-type, Dirichlet (D)-type and Gross–Pitaevskii (GP)-type vortices. The Neumann-type vortex has a non-vanishing condensation at the core, that is different from the ordinary vortex, and the magnetic flux could be reversed as well in LMH. Furthermore, we have obtained a new type of a neutral vortex which has no magnetic field. The presence of such a vortex is related to metallic superfluid state suggested by Babaev (2004) [1].     

脉冲激励下超音速混合层涡结构的演化机理

采用大涡模拟方法对脉冲激励作用下的超音速混合层流场进行数值模拟,所得结果清晰展示了流场中涡结构的独特生长机理.基于涡核位置提取方法,对超音速混合层流场中涡结构的空间尺寸和瞬时对流速度等动态特性进行了定量计算.通过分析流场中涡结构的动态特性在不同频率脉冲激励下的变化,揭示出受脉冲激励超音速混合层流场中涡结构的演化机理:涡结构的生长不再是依靠相邻涡-涡结构之间的配对与融合,而是通过涡核外围的一串小涡旋结构被依次吸进涡核来实现,且受激励流场中各个涡结构的空间尺寸变化较小;流场中的涡结构数量与脉冲频率成正比例关系,而涡结构的空间尺寸与脉冲频率成反比例关系;涡结构的平均对流速度随脉冲频率的增大而减小.针对受脉冲激励超音速混合层,给出了能够表征涡结构特性与脉冲激励参数之间关系的方程式,即受激励流场中涡结构的平均对流速度与脉冲周期的乘积近似等于流场中涡结构的空间尺寸(涡结构平均直径).     

磁化等离子体中静电漂移波和剪切阿耳芬波的非线性耦合

本文采用Hasegawa-Wakatani方程组研究磁化等离子体中静电漂移波和剪切阿耳芬波的非线性耦合。求得非线性方程组的偶极涡旋解。这些解属于本性电磁涡旋,对应的扰动磁场和纵向电流在涡旋边界上是连续的。 关键词：     

Observation of structures of chain vortices inside anisotropic high- Tc superconductors

In order to elucidate the formation mechanism of unconventional arrangements of vortices in high- Tc superconducting thin films at an inclined magnetic field to the layer plane, we investigated the structures of vortex lines inside the films by Lorentz microscopy using our 1-MV field-emission electron microscope. Our observation results concluded that vortex lines are tilted to form linear chains in YBaCu3O(7,8). Vortex lines in the chain-lattice state in Bi2Sr2CaCu2O(8+delta), on the other hand, are all perpendicular to the layer plane, and therefore only vortices lined up along Josephson vortices form chains.     

Secondary instabilities and vortex formation in collisionless-fluid magnetic reconnection

It is shown that the pattern of current layers formed within a magnetic island in the nonlinear phase of magnetic field line reconnection in a collisionless two-dimensional fluid plasma is subject to the onset of a secondary instability, the effect of which increases with decreasing electron temperature. In the cold electron limit the saturation of the island growth is accompanied by a turbulent redistribution of the current layers and by the development of long lived fluid vortices while, in the opposite limit, the current layer structure remains regular.     

基于三角波瓣混合器的超声速流场精细结构和掺混特性

在超声速吸气式混合层风洞中,采用基于纳米粒子的平面激光散射(NPLS)技术对平板混合层和三角波瓣混合器诱导的混合层流场精细结构进行了对比实验研究.上下两层来流的实测马赫数分别为1.98和2.84,对流马赫数为0.2.NPLS图像清晰地展示了Kelvin-Helmholtz涡、流向涡、波系结构以及大尺度涡结构的配对合并过程.通过对比分析时间相关的NPLS流场图像,发现了大尺度拟序结构随时间发展演化的非定常特性.基于流动显示结果,采用分形维数和间歇因子指标对流场结构和混合特性进行了定量分析.实验研究表明,三角波瓣混合器诱导的流向涡结构显著提高了上下两层来流的掺混效率,其流动远场的分形维数突破了平板混合层中完全湍流区的分形维数值,达到了1.88,流场结构表现出明显的破碎性,有利于流动在标量层面的扩散和掺混.流动间歇性分析表明,流向涡与展向涡的相互剪切作用主导着混合层的掺混特性,同时由于流向涡的卷吸作用,三角波瓣混合器诱导的混合层混合区域更大,更多的流质被卷入混合区完成混合.     

Vortex liquid crystals in anisotropic type II superconductors

In an isotropic type II superconductor in a moderate magnetic field, the transition to the normal state occurs by vortex lattice melting. In certain anisotropic cases, the vortices acquire elongated cross sections and interactions. Systems of anisotropic, interacting constituents generally exhibit liquid crystalline phases. We examine the possibility of a two step melting in homogeneous type II superconductors with anisotropic superfluid stiffness from a vortex lattice into first a vortex smectic and then a vortex nematic at high temperature and magnetic field. We find that fluctuations of the ordered phase favor an instability to an intermediate smectic-A in the absence of intrinsic pinning.     

Active control of coaxial jet mixing with manipulation of primary vortical structures by arrayed micro flap actuators

Active mixing control of a methane/air isothermal coaxial jet was achieved using micro magnetic flap actuators arranged on the inner surface of the outer annular nozzle. The spatio-temporal evolution of vortical structures and the scalar mixing were studied through the particle image velocimetry and planar laser-induced fluorescence methods. In contrast to studies on jet control using acoustic forcing, the mechanical movement of the flap directly generated large-scale intense vortices. The mixing was enhanced significantly by the vortices formed in the inner shear layer, although the control input was given to the outer shear layer. It was found that the primary vortex rings dominated the near-field mixing, while streamwise vortices were responsible for the downstream mixing. It was also demonstrated that the radial range of the inner fuel transportation could be manipulated flexibly by adjusting the shedding interval of the vortices. Especially, the mixing was enhanced most significantly when the primary vortices were most densely populated near the nozzle exit at the control Strouhal number of unity.     

入流激励下可压缩剪切层中Kelvin-Helmholtz涡的响应特性

通过直接数值求解Navier-Stokes方程,研究了入流激励下可压缩剪切层中Kelvin-Helmholtz(KH)涡结构的响应特性,结果清晰地展示了KH涡的独特演化方式.基于流动可视化数据,采用两点相关性分析获得了流场拟序结构的空间尺寸和结构角分布.通过分析不同激励频率下涡结构的动态特性,揭示了入流激励下可压缩剪切层中KH涡结构的独特演化机理.研究结果表明,低频入流激励(f=5 k Hz)下KH涡尺寸在远场区域达到饱和后呈现锁频状态,KH涡量厚度稳定在12-14 mm之间;与自由剪切层涡结构通过配对合并的方式实现生长的机理不同,低频入流激励下剪切层的发展是通过中间涡核顺时针吞噬KH不稳定波诱导的一串外围小涡结构来实现生长.此外,针对高频激励(f=20 k Hz)下的剪切层流动,研究了涡结构特性和入流激励参数之间的定量关系,发现均匀分布涡结构的尺寸近似等于对流速度与入流激励频率之比.     

Time window for magnetic reconnection in plasma configurations with velocity shear

It is shown that the rate of magnetic field line reconnection can be clocked by the evolution of the large-scale processes that are responsible for the formation of the current layers where reconnection can take place. In unsteady plasma configurations, such as those produced by the onset of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability in a plasma with a velocity shear, qualitatively different magnetic structures are produced depending on how fast the reconnection process develops on the external clock set by the evolving large-scale configuration.     

Vortex chains induced by anisotropic spin-orbit coupling and magnetic field in spin-2 Bose-Einstein condensates

We investigate the anisotropic spin-orbit coupled spin-2 Bose-Einstein condensates with Ioffe-Pritchard magnetic field. With nonzero magnetic field, anisotropic spin-orbit coupling will introduce several vortices and further generate a vortex chain. Inside the vortex chain, the vortices connect to each other, forming a line along the axis. The physical nature of the vortex chain can be explained by the particle current and the momentum distribution. The vortex number inside the vortex chain can be influenced via varying the magnetic field. Through adjusting the anisotropy of the spin-orbit coupling, the direction of the vortex chain is changed, and the vortex lattice can be triggered. Moreover, accompanied by the variation of the atomic interactions, the density and the momentum distribution of the vortex chain are affected. The realization and the detection of the vortex chain are compatible with current experimental techniques.