Plasma Physics Research Potential

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the potential for research in plasma physics, particularly in the context of transitioning from engineering to a more fundamental scientific field. Participants explore the scope of research opportunities in fusion plasma physics and space plasma physics, as well as the nature of scientific discovery in fluid dynamics and plasma applications.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses a desire to shift from engineering to plasma physics, questioning the extent of fundamental research opportunities in fusion plasma physics and whether it has become more of an engineering challenge.
  • Another participant argues that engineering can be complex and not routine, highlighting the integration of theory and computational methods in their work.
  • There is a discussion about the existence of scientific discovery in fluid dynamics, with questions raised about whether new numerical solutions are being developed or if the field primarily focuses on modeling known phenomena.
  • Space plasma physics is presented as an alternative research area, with references to various journals and topics of interest, such as solar wind and planetary magnetospheres.
  • Participants mention the importance of computational plasma physics and its applications, suggesting that there are multiple areas of research within plasma physics, including stellar and terrestrial plasmas.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the nature of research in plasma physics, with differing views on whether it is primarily an engineering problem or if there remains significant room for fundamental scientific inquiry. The discussion also reflects varying opinions on the complexity and novelty of fluid dynamics research.

Contextual Notes

Participants note limitations in analytical solutions for fluid dynamics, particularly in non-linear cases, and the dependence on numerical methods for understanding complex flows. The discussion also highlights the need for improved theoretical understanding to enhance computational capabilities.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals interested in transitioning from engineering to physics, those exploring research opportunities in plasma physics or fluid dynamics, and students considering advanced studies in related fields may find this discussion relevant.

MagnetoBLI
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I'm currently in my final year of an aircraft propulsion PhD and have become passionate about plasma physics, due to its fluid like similarities. I find engineering too-well-defined for my liking and would like to research in a less well defined field, i.e. physics. I am considering taking a plasma research MSc to fill my knowledge gap and hopefully enable me to be considered for a plasma physics postdoc.

However, I saw a documentary on the JET Fusion Lab and Brian Cox (physicist) described the work as being somewhat routine i.e. well defined research. My questions are; how much room is there for fusion plasma physicists to perform 'fundamental' research? Is it becoming more of an engineering problem than a scientific one? Would the move to plasma physics likely satisfy my thirst for understanding rather than engineering manipulating?

Thanks for your time, any help is much appreciated.
 
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MagnetoBLI said:
I'm currently in my final year of an aircraft propulsion PhD and have become passionate about plasma physics, due to its fluid like similarities. I find engineering too-well-defined for my liking and would like to research in a less well defined field, i.e. physics. I am considering taking a plasma research MSc to fill my knowledge gap and hopefully enable me to be considered for a plasma physics postdoc.

However, I saw a documentary on the JET Fusion Lab and Brian Cox (physicist) described the work as being somewhat routine i.e. well defined research. My questions are; how much room is there for fusion plasma physicists to perform 'fundamental' research? Is it becoming more of an engineering problem than a scientific one? Would the move to plasma physics likely satisfy my thirst for understanding rather than engineering manipulating?

Thanks for your time, any help is much appreciated.
One could contact Culham and find out about jobs and academic opportunities.
http://www.ccfe.ac.uk/jobs.aspx

http://www.culhamphd.org.uk/
http://www.culhamphd.org.uk/typicalPhDtopics.html

http://www.york.ac.uk/physics/postgraduate/fusion-dtn/


I have found engineering to anything but routine, but then I work with a rather unique group that applies theory and develops methods - computational systems and methodology - and perform predictive analyses. In some cases, we need to improve on the theoretical understanding in order to improve computational capabilites.

I actually prefer to combine engineering (applied physics) with physics, and that applies to condensed matter, liquids, gases and plasmas. Computational physics now spans scales from the atom to engineered systems (engineering scale).

There are opportunities in plasma propuslion systems.
http://www.esa.int/gsp/ACT/pro/pp/DS4G/background.htm
http://www.esa.int/gsp/ACT/pro/pp/DS4G/DS4G%20description.html

http://prl.anu.edu.au/SP3/research/DSFG Thruster/DS4G.php

http://www.mars-space.co.uk/Pages/DS4GHiPERProject.aspx
 
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Thanks for the MHD links, I'll look into that.

Ah yes, I am also considering applying to engineering physics departments; mainly topics such as nanotechnology materials interaction with fluid flow. I understand that, in general, not many analytical fluid dynamics solutions exist. Does this mean novel numerical solutions are being developed to understand these more complex flows? Does scientific discovery exist in fluid dynamics or is it mostly new techniques of modelling known phenomena?

Cheers
 
Besides fusion research, another option is Space Plasma Physics. Space plasma physics studies things like the sun, solar wind, planetary magnetospheres and ionospheres, etc. One prime journal is Journal of Geophysical Reasearch A (space physics). Other journals are Physics of Plasmas, Geophysical research letters. This is what I studied in graduate school and found it to be a lot of fun.

jason
 
MagnetoBLI said:
I understand that, in general, not many analytical fluid dynamics solutions exist.
Usually only in ideal cases. In most cases, fluid behavior is non-linear, e.g., turbulent flow, and particularly heated and/or high velocity flows, and particularly if there is fluid-structure interaction.

quote]Does this mean novel numerical solutions are being developed to understand these more complex flows? Does scientific discovery exist in fluid dynamics or is it mostly new techniques of modelling known phenomena? [/QUOTE] Yes. CFD. Scientific discovery exists in fluids as well as in techniques for simulating flow.

here are four major areas for plasma physics:

1. Stellar interiors and atmosphere (photosphere, chromosphere and corona, and transition zones)
2. Stellar exteriors - outside the corona
3. Terrestrial plasmas for fusion
4. Low temperature plasmas or weakly ionized gases for manufacturing and other applications.

Some basics:

Alan Hood's text on fundamentals of plasma physics
http://www-solar.mcs.st-and.ac.uk/~alan/MT3601/Fundamentals/Fundamentals.html

Richard Fitzpatrick's notes
https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=22090
http://farside.ph.utexas.edu/papers/papers.html
http://farside.ph.utexas.edu/teaching/plasma/plasma.html
http://farside.ph.utexas.edu/teaching.html - Physics courses


There is a lot of research in Computational Plasma Physics

http://wiki.cpp.alecthomas.com/wiki/Main_Page

Computational Plasma Physics: With Applications To Fusion And Astrophysics (Frontiers in Physics)
Toshi Tajima
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0813342112/?tag=pfamazon01-20

http://www.theorie.physik.uni-muenchen.de/lsruhl/index.html

https://math.nyu.edu/faculty/garabedi/index.html

Computational Models of Magnetic Fusion - HOW THE DEMO FUSION REACTOR
SHOULD LOOK IF ITER FAILS
https://math.nyu.edu/faculty/garabedi/magnetic_fusion.pdf

Computational Plasma Physics Group - Princeton - PPPL
http://w3.pppl.gov/cppg/

http://www-maths.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/pg/applied/plasma.shtml

The DOE ACTS (Advanced CompuTational Software) Collection
http://acts.nersc.gov/


Handbook of Plasma Processing Technology: Fundamentals, Etching, Deposition, and Surface Interactions
http://books.google.com/books/about/Handbook_of_Plasma_Processing_Technology.html?id=bBjpoLsyycMC
http://www.knovel.com/web/portal/browse/display?_EXT_KNOVEL_DISPLAY_bookid=522

Plasma Processing Technology Lab - U of Wisconsin
http://pptl.engr.wisc.edu/research.html

Fusion Doctoral Training Network - University of York, Heslington, York, Yorkshire, UK
http://www.york.ac.uk/physics/postgraduate/fusion-dtn/introduction/
Universities of Durham, Liverpool, Manchester, Oxford and York, in collaboration with the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE) and the Central Laser Facility, and with funding support from the EPSRC.
http://www.york.ac.uk/physics/ypi/
http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/business/news/9955360.Official_opening_for_York_Plasma_Institute/


University of Manchester
http://www.manchester.ac.uk/research/neil.salmon/research
http://www.physics.manchester.ac.uk/research/

A basic overview of fusion
http://www.jodrellbank.manchester.ac.uk/~bm/Teaching/en_sources/Lecture_notes/Lecture8_fusion_notes.pdf


Looks like a nice place to study Astro and Particle physics.
University of Innsbruck, Institute for Astro- and Particle Physics
http://www.uibk.ac.at/astro/
http://www.uibk.ac.at/dk-cim/projects/kimeswenger/index.html.en


at ESA - http://www.esa.int/gsp/ACT/opportunities/RF/ACT-2010-Research%20Fellow%20in%20Plasma%20Physics%20and%20Advanced%20Propulsion.pdf

These are just a sampling of opportunities out there.
 
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jasonRF said:
Besides fusion research, another option is Space Plasma Physics. Space plasma physics studies things like the sun, solar wind, planetary magnetospheres and ionospheres, etc. One prime journal is Journal of Geophysical Reasearch A (space physics). Other journals are Physics of Plasmas, Geophysical research letters. This is what I studied in graduate school and found it to be a lot of fun.

jason
IEEE publishes IEEE Transaction on Plasma Science
http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/RecentIssue.jsp?punumber=27

IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society (NPSS)
http://ewh.ieee.org/soc/nps/about-npss.html

IoP's Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
http://iopscience.iop.org/0741-3335

See also AIP Physics of Plasmas - http://pop.aip.org/

and APS Division of Plasma Physics - http://www.apsdpp.org/index.php


An intereting path to plasma physics - http://web.mit.edu/nse/people/faculty/parradiaz.html
http://web.mit.edu/nse/news/spotlights/2011/parra.html
 
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