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A theoretical framework for emission originating from rapidly rotating oblate compact objects is described in detail. By using a Hamilton-Jacobi formalism, we show how the special relativistic rotational effects such as aberration of…
A pulse shaping algorithm for a matter wave with the purpose of controlling a binary reaction has been designed. The scheme is illustrated for an Eley-Rideal reaction where an impinging matter-wave atom recombines with an adsorbed atom on a…
Laser propulsion has been proposed for relativistic interstellar flights, but it faces the significant challenge of requiring extremely powerful laser radiation due to the inherently low momentum transfer between the beam and the sail. The…
This paper presents the design of a multi-spacecraft system for the deflection of asteroids. Each spacecraft is equipped with a fibre laser and a solar concentrator. The laser induces the sublimation of a portion of the surface of the…
The calibration of the in-flight antenna beam shape and possible beamdegradation is one of the most crucial tasks for the upcoming Planck mission. We examine several effects which could significantly influence the in-flight main beam…
We report on the morphological effects induced by the inhomogeneous absorption of cylindrically polarized femtosecond laser irradiation of silver (Ag) in sub-ablation conditions. A theoretical prediction of the role of surface plasmon…
We consider deflection of rotating symmetric molecules by inhomogeneous optical and static electric fields, compare results with the case of linear molecules, and find new singularities in the distribution of the scattering angle.…
Decades of work on beam deformation on reflection, and especially on lateral shifts, have spread the idea that a reflected beam is larger than the incident beam. However, when the right conditions are met, a beam reflected by a multilayered…
The microscopic mechanism of metal ablation induced by ultrashort laser pulse irradiation is investigated. A two-temperature model scheme combined with molecular dynamics (TTM-MD) is developed to incorporate electronic entropy effects into…
Planetary rings produce a distinct shape distortion in transit lightcurves. However, to accurately model such lightcurves the observations need to cover the entire transit, especially ingress and egress, as well as an out-of-transit…
A molecular-dynamics thermal annealing model is proposed to investigate the mechanisms involved in picosecond pulsed laser ablation of crystalline silicon. In accordance with the thermal annealing model, a detailed description of the…
The interaction of ultrashort, high intensity laser pulses with thin foil targets leads to ion acceleration on the target rear surface. To make this ion source useful for applications, it is important to optimize the transfer of energy from…
We aim to understand how landslides affect the shape and rotational motion of small rubble planetary bodies. We limit ourselves to axisymmetric global landslides, and take the primordial shape of the body to also be axisymmetric. The…
We describe how the various outcomes of stellar tidal disruption give rise to observable radiation. We separately consider the cases where gas circularizes rapidly into an accretion disc, as well as the case when shocked debris streams…
We extend our previous study of radiative ablation of circumstellar disks by line-scattering of the star's radiation, accounting now for the effect of multiple line resonances off the stellar limb. For an analytic, three-dimensional model…
We have computed models of rotating relativistic stars with a toroidal magnetic field and investigated the combined effects of magnetic field and rotation on the apparent shape (i.e. the surface deformation), which could be relevant for the…
Ionization is a fundamental process in intense laser-matter interactions, and is known to cause plasma defocusing and intensity clamping. Here, we investigate theoretically the propagation dynamics of an intense laser pulse in a helium gas…
We study the fluid-mediated approach of a deformable axisymmetric object towards a rigid substrate, focusing on how its shape influences contact formation. For low approach velocities and large Stokes numbers, we show that sharper profiles…
When a laser passes through underdense plasmas, Raman and Brillouin Backscattering can reflect a substantial portion of the incident laser energy. This is a major loss mechanism, for example, in employing lasers in inertial confinement…
A laser beam propagating to a remote target through atmospheric turbulence acquires intensity fluctuations. If the target is cooperative and provides a coherent return beam, the phase measured near the beam transmitter and adaptive optics…