arXiv subjects

I. L. Caldas

Publications and source records attributed to I. L. Caldas.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2018

Influence of the Radial Electric Field on the Shearless Transport Barriers in Tokamaks

In tokamaks, internal transport barriers, produced by modifications of the plasma current profile, reduce particle transport and improve plasma confinement. The triggering of the internal transport barriers and their dependence on the plasma profiles is a key nonlinear dynamics problem still under investigation. We consider the onset of shearless invariant curves inside the plasma which create internal transport barriers. A non-integrable drift-kinetic model is used to describe particle transport driven by drift waves and to investigate these shearless barriers onset in tokamaks. We show that for some currently observed plasma profiles shearless particle transport barriers can be triggered by properly modifying the electric field profile and the influence of non-resonant modes in the barriers onset. In particular, we show that a broken barrier can be restored by enhancing non-resonant modes.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2018

Energy Distribution in Intrinsically Coupled Systems: The Spring Pendulum Paradigm

Intrinsically nonlinear coupled systems present different oscillating components that exchange energy among themselves. We present a new approach to deal with such energy exchanges and to investigate how it depends on the system control parameters. The method consists in writing the total energy of the system, and properly identifying the energy terms for each component and, especially, their coupling. To illustrate the proposed approach, we work with the bi-dimensional spring pendulum, which is a paradigm to study nonlinear coupled systems, and is used as a model for several systems. For the spring pendulum, we identify three energy components, resembling the spring and pendulum like motions, and the coupling between them. With these analytical expressions, we analyze the energy exchange for individual trajectories, and we also obtain global characteristics of the spring pendulum energy distribution by calculating spatial and time average energy components for a great number of trajectories (periodic, quasi-periodic and chaotic) throughout the phase space. Considering an energy term due to the nonlinear coupling, we identify regions in the parameter space that correspond to strong and weak coupling. The presented procedure can be applied to nonlinear coupled systems to reveal how the coupling mediates internal energy exchanges, and how the energy distribution varies according to the system parameters.

nlin.CD↗

arXiv2018

Improving particle beam acceleration in plasmas

The dynamics of wave-particle interactions in magnetized plasmas restricts the wave amplitude to moderate values for particle beam acceleration from rest energy. We analyze how a perturbing invariant robust barrier modifies the phase space of the system and enlarges the wave amplitude interval for particle acceleration. For low values of the wave amplitude, the acceleration becomes effective for particles with initial energy close to the rest energy. For higher values of the wave amplitude, the robust barrier controls chaos in the system and restores the acceleration process. We also determine the best position for the perturbing barrier in phase space in order to increase the final energy of the particles.

physics.acc-ph↗

arXiv2018

Efficient manifold tracing for planar maps

Invariant manifolds of unstable periodic orbits organize the dynamics of chaotic orbits in phase space. They provide insight into the mechanisms of transport and chaotic advection and have important applications in physical situations involving three-dimensional flows. The numerical determination of invariant manifolds for planar maps is a problem on its own. Efficient and practical techniques to describe these curves must be made available to the scientific community. In this work we introduce an exact calculation method and an approximation technique for tracing the invariant manifolds of unstable periodic orbits of planar maps. The exact method relies in a refinement procedure that prevents redundant calculations occurring in non-refinement approaches and the approximated method is based on an intuitive geometrical decomposition of the manifold in bare and fine details. The resulting approximated manifold is precise when compared to the exact manifold, and its calculation is computationally more efficient, making it ideal for mappings involving intensive calculations like inverse functions or numerical integration of ODEs between crossings in a surface of section.

nlin.CD↗

arXiv2017

Symplectic Maps for Diverted Plasmas

Nowadays, divertors are used in the main tokamaks to control the magnetic field and to improve the plasma confinement. In this article, we present analytical symplectic maps describing Poincaré maps of the magnetic field lines in confined plasmas with a single null poloidal divertor. Initially, we present a divertor map and the tokamap for a diverted configuration. We also introduce the Ullmann map for a diverted plasma, whose control parameters are determined from tokamak experiments. Finally, an explicit, area-preserving and integrable magnetic field line map for a single-null divertor tokamak is obtained using a trajectory integration method to represent toroidal equilibrium magnetic surfaces. In this method, we also give examples of onset of chaotic field lines at the plasma edge due to resonant perturbations.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2017

Alterations in brain connectivity due to plasticity and synaptic delay

Brain plasticity refers to brain's ability to change neuronal connections, as a result of environmental stimuli, new experiences, or damage. In this work, we study the effects of the synaptic delay on both the coupling strengths and synchronisation in a neuronal network with synaptic plasticity. We build a network of Hodgkin-Huxley neurons, where the plasticity is given by the Hebbian rules. We verify that without time delay the excitatory synapses became stronger from the high frequency to low frequency neurons and the inhibitory synapses increases in the opposite way, when the delay is increased the network presents a non-trivial topology. Regarding the synchronisation, only for small values of the synaptic delay this phenomenon is observed.

q-bio.NC↗

arXiv2017

Inference of topology and the nature of synapses, and the flow of information in neuronal networks

The characterisation of neuronal connectivity is one of the most important matters in neuroscience. In this work, we show that a recently proposed informational quantity, the causal mutual information, employed with an appropriate methodology, can be used not only to correctly infer the direction of the underlying physical synapses, but also to identify their excitatory or inhibitory nature, considering easy to handle and measure bivariate time-series. The success of our approach relies on a surprising property found in neuronal networks by which non-adjacent neurons do "understand" each other (positive mutual information), however this exchange of information is not capable of causing effect (zero transfer entropy). Remarkably, inhibitory connections, responsible for enhancing synchronisation, transfer more information than excitatory connections, known to enhance entropy in the network. We also demonstrate that our methodology can be used to correctly infer directionality of synapses even in the presence of dynamic and observational Gaussian noise, and is also successful in providing the effective directionality of inter modular connectivity, when only mean fields can be measured.

q-bio.NC↗

arXiv2017

How synapses can enhance sensibility of a neural network

In this work, we study the dynamic range in a neuronal network modelled by cellular automaton. We consider deterministic and non-deterministic rules to simulate electrical and chemical synapses. Chemical synapses have an intrinsic time-delay and are susceptible to parameter variations guided by learning Hebbian rules of behaviour. Our results show that chemical synapses can abruptly enhance sensibility of the neural network, a manifestation that can become even more predominant if learning rules of evolution are applied to the chemical synapses.

physics.bio-ph↗

arXiv2017

Chimera in a neuronal network model of the cat brain

Neuronal systems have been modeled by complex networks in different description levels. Recently, it has been verified that networks can simultaneously exhibit one coherent and other incoherent domain, known as chimera states. In this work, we study the existence of chimera states in a network considering the connectivity matrix based on the cat cerebral cortex. The cerebral cortex of the cat can be separated in 65 cortical areas organised into the four cognitive regions: visual, auditory, somatosensory-motor and frontolimbic. We consider a network where the local dynamics is given by the Hindmarsh-Rose model. The Hindmarsh-Rose equations are a well known model of neuronal activity that has been considered to simulate membrane potential in neuron. Here, we analyse under which conditions chimera states are present, as well as the affects induced by intensity of coupling on them. We observe the existence of chimera states in that incoherent structure can be composed of desynchronised spikes or desynchronised bursts. Moreover, we find that chimera states with desynchronised bursts are more robust to neuronal noise than with desynchronised spikes.

nlin.AO↗

arXiv2016

Modeling non-stationary, non-axisymmetric heat patterns in DIII-D tokamak

Non-axisymmetric stationary magnetic perturbations lead to the formation of homoclinic tangles near the divertor magnetic saddle in tokamak discharges. These tangles intersect the divertor plates in static helical structures that delimit the regions reached by open magnetic field lines reaching the plasma column and leading the charged particles to the strike surfaces by parallel transport. In this article we introduce a non-axisymmetric rotating magnetic perturbation to model the time development of the three-dimensional magnetic field of a single-null DIII-D tokamak discharge developing a rotating tearing mode. The stable and unstable manifolds of the asymmetric magnetic saddle are calculated through an adaptive method providing the manifold cuts at a given poloidal plane and the strike surfaces. For the modeled shot, the experimental heat pattern and its time development are well described by the rotating unstable manifold, indicating the emergence of homoclinic lobes in a rotating frame due to the plasma instabilities. In the model it is assumed that the magnetic field is created by a stationary axisymmetric plasma current and a set of rotating internal helical filamentary currents. The currents in the filaments are adjusted to match the waveforms of the magnetic probes at the mid-plane and the rotating magnetic field is introduced as a perturbation to the axisymmetric field obtained from a Grad-Shafranov equilibrium reconstruction code.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2016

A statistical study of gyro-averaging effects in a reduced model of drift-wave transport

A statistical study of finite Larmor radius (FLR) effects on transport driven by electrostatic drift-waves is presented. The study is based on a reduced discrete Hamiltonian dynamical system known as the gyro-averaged standard map (GSM). In this system, FLR effects are incorporated through the gyro-averaging of a simplified weak-turbulence model of electrostatic fluctuations. Formally, the GSM is a modified version of the standard map in which the perturbation amplitude, $K_0$, becomes $K_0 J_0(\hatρ)$, where $J_0$ is the zeroth-order Bessel function and $\hatρ$ is the Larmor radius. Assuming a Maxwellian probability density function (pdf) for $\hatρ$, we compute analytically and numerically the pdf and the cumulative distribution function of the effective drift-wave perturbation amplitude $K_0 J_0(\hatρ)$. Using these results we compute the probability of loss of confinement (i.e., global chaos), $P_{c}$, and the probability of trapping in the main drift-wave resonance, $P_{t}$. It is shown that $P_{c}$ provides an upper bound for the escape rate, and that $P_{t}$ provides a good estimate of the particle trapping rate. The analytical results are compared with direct numerical Monte-Carlo simulations of particle transport.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2015

Characterization in bi-parameter space of a non-ideal oscillator

We investigate the dynamical behavior of a non-ideal Duffing oscillator, a system composed of a mass-spring-pendulum driven by a DC motor with limited power supply. To identify new features on Duffing oscillator parameter space due to the limited power supply, we provide an extensive numerical characterization in the bi-parameter space by using Lyapunov exponents. Following this procedure, we identify remarkable new periodic windows, the ones known as Arnold tongues and also shrimp-shaped structures. Such windows appear in highly organized distribution with typical self-similar structures for the shrimps, and, surprisingly, codimension-2 bifurcation as a point of accumulations for the tongues.

nlin.CD↗

arXiv2015

Effects of the spike timing-dependent plasticity on the synchronisation in a random Hodgkin-Huxley neuronal network

In this paper, we study the effects of spike timing-dependent plasticity on synchronisation in a network of Hodgkin-Huxley neurons. Neuron plasticity is a flexible property of a neuron and its network to change temporarily or permanently their biochemical, physiological, and morphological characteristics, in order to adapt to the environment. Regarding the plasticity, we consider Hebbian rules, specifically for spike timing-dependent plasticity (STDP), and with regard to network, we consider that the connections are randomly distributed. We analyse the synchronisation and desynchronisation according to an input level and probability of connections. Moreover, we verify that the transition for synchronisation depends on the neuronal network architecture, and the external perturbation level.

q-bio.NC↗

arXiv2014

Area-preserving maps models of gyro-averaged ${\bf E} \times {\bf B}$ chaotic transport

Discrete maps have been extensively used to model 2-dimensional chaotic transport in plasmas and fluids. Here we focus on area-preserving maps describing finite Larmor radius (FLR) effects on ${\bf E} \times {\bf B}$ chaotic transport in magnetized plasmas with zonal flows perturbed by electrostatic drift waves. FLR effects are included by gyro-averaging the Hamiltonians of the maps which, depending on the zonal flow profile, can have monotonic or non-monotonic frequencies. In the limit of zero Larmor radius, the monotonic frequency map reduces to the standard Chirikov-Taylor map, and, in the case of non-monotonic frequency, the map reduces to the standard nontwist map. We show that in both cases FLR leads to chaos suppression, changes in the stability of fixed points, and robustness of transport barriers. FLR effects are also responsible for changes in the phase space topology and zonal flow bifurcations. Dynamical systems methods based on recurrence time statistics are used to quantify the dependence on the Larmor radius of the threshold for the destruction of transport barriers.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2014

A semi-analytical solver for the Grad-Shafranov equation

In toroidally confined plasmas, the Grad-Shafranov equation, in general a non-linear PDE, describes the hydromagnetic equilibrium of the system. This equation becomes linear when the kinetic pressure is proportional to the poloidal magnetic flux and the squared poloidal current is a quadratic function of it. In this work, the eigenvalue of the associated homogeneous equation is related with the safety factor on the magnetic axis, the plasma beta and the Shafranov shift, then, the adjustable parameters of the particular solution are bounded through physical constrains. The poloidal magnetic flux becomes a linear superposition of independent solutions and its parameters are adjusted with a non-linear fitting algorithm. This method is used to find hydromagnetic equilibria with normal and reversed magnetic shear and defined values of the elongation, triangularity, aspect-ratio, and X-point(s). The resultant toroidal and poloidal beta, the safety factor at the $95\%$ flux surface and the plasma current are in agreement with usual experimental values for high beta discharges and the model can be used locally to describe reversed magnetic shear equilibria.

physics.plasm-ph↗

arXiv2014

Super persistent transient in a master-slave configuration with Colpitts oscillators

Master-slave systems have been intensively investigated to model the application of chaos to communications. We considered Colpitts oscillators coupled according to a master-slave configuration to study chaos synchronisation. We revealed the existence of super persistent transients in this coupled system. Moreover, we showed that an additive noise added to the slave system may suppress chaos synchronisation. When synchronisation is not suppressed, the noise induces longer transients.

nlin.CD↗

arXiv2014

Parameter Uncertainties on the Predictability of Periodicity and Chaos

Nonlinear dynamical systems, ranging from insect populations to lasers and chemical reactions, might exhibit sensitivity to small perturbations in their control parameters, resulting in uncertainties on the predictability of tunning parameters that lead these systems to either a chaotic or a periodic behavior. By quantifying such uncertainties in four different classes of nonlinear systems, we show that this sensitivity is to be expected because the boundary between the sets of parameters leading to chaos and to periodicity is fractal. Moreover, the dimension of this fractal boundary was shown to be roughly the same for these classes of systems. Using an heuristic model for the way periodic windows appear in parameter spaces, we provide an explanation for the universal character of this fractal boundary.

nlin.CD↗

arXiv2013

Alternate islands of multiple isochronous chains in wave-particle interactions

We analyze the dynamics of a relativistic particle moving in a uniform magnetic field and perturbed by a standing electrostatic wave. We show that a pulsed wave produces an infinite number of perturbative terms with the same winding number, which may generate islands in the same region of phase space. As a consequence, the number of isochronous island chains varies as a function of the wave parameters. We observe that in all the resonances, the number of chains is related to the amplitude of the various resonant terms. We determine analytically the position of the periodic points and the number of island chains as a function of the wave number and wave period. Such information is very important when one is concerned with regular particle acceleration, since it is necessary to adjust the initial conditions of the particle to obtain the maximum acceleration.

physics.class-ph↗