Plasma characteristics and broadband electromagnetic wave absorption in argon and helium capacitively coupled plasma

A one-dimensional self-consistent calculation model of capacitively coupled plasma(CCP)discharge and electromagnetic wave propagation is developed to solve the plasma characteristics and electromagnetic wave transmission attenuation.Numerical simulation results show that the peak electron number density of argon is about 12 times higher than that of helium,and that the electron number density increases with the augment of pressure,radio frequency(RF)power,and RF frequency.However,the electron number density first increases and then decreases as the discharge gap increases.The transmission attenuation of electromagnetic wave in argon discharge plasma is 8.5-dB higher than that of helium.At the same time,the transmission attenuation increases with the augment of the RF power and RF frequency,but it does not increase or decrease monotonically with the increase of gas pressure and discharge gap.The electromagnetic wave absorption frequency band of the argon discharge plasma under the optimal parameters in this paper can reach the Ku band.It is concluded that the argon CCP discharge under the optimal discharge parameters has great potential applications in plasma stealth.

About the Reliability of Particle in Cell Methods and the Notion of a“Local”Temperature of Ionized Species Around a Spacecraft in the Ionosphere

The development of space science has generated important computer codes for the simulation of the interaction between complex space structures(artificial satellites,solar panels,etc.)and the surrounding plasma.The basic equation to be solved is the Poisson equation for the electric potential around a structure.Here,we try to study analytically the shadowing effect of a spacecraft on an electrode for the electron number density and the electron temperature.We suggest that the electron temperature should be taken as a variable and not as a parameter.However,its computation involves the knowledge of the histogram of the distribution of the frequencies of the electron velocities inside the computational cells.Also,we have illustrated the possibilities of artefacts due to the design and geometry of scientific instruments for the measurement of the electron number density and the electron temperature in the ionosphere.We suggest an optimal design for an electrode and its guard ring.

Study on gamma-ray attenuation characteristics of some amino acids for 133Ba,137Cs, and 60Co sources

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins,which are the most abundant macromolecules in living cells.From the standpoint of the photon interaction cross sections of amino acids,the mass attenuation coefficients,half and tenth value layers,mean free path,effective atomic and electronic cross sections,effective atomic number,and effective electron density of fifteen essential amino acids have been determined for 133Ba,137Cs,and 60Co gamma-ray sources.The MCNP-4C code and the XCOM program have been used to calculate these parameters.The results have been compared to the available experimental and theoretical data.The theoretical results agreed with the experimental data,with RD values of ≤±7%.In the energy region of 81-1332.5 keV,it was found that the μm,σa,and revalues of the amino acids decreased as the photon energy increased,and the increasing density of amino acids had no steady effect on these quantities.Additionally,results demonstrated that the HVL,TVL,and MFP values increased with the increase in photon energy.The μm,σa,and Zeff values of aspartic acid were the highest among those of all amino acids,and they were the lowest for isoleucine.The Zeff value of each sample containing H,C,N,and O atoms was nearly constant in the studied energy region.The Neffvalues of the studied amino acids varied in the range of 3.14×10^23-3.44×10^23 electron/g.Furthermore,the Neffvalues were approximately independent of the amino acid type in this energy region.