Abstract
A full-particle particle-in-cell (PIC) simulation model is developed to perform fully-kinetic simulations of surface-plasma interactions at the lunar terminator region. This model uses a non-homogeneous immersed-finite-element (IFE) solver to calculate the electric field discontinuity (flux jump) at the plasma-surface interface and surface charging for realistic lunar surface terrain. The simulation includes all plasma species, including the solar wind electrons and ions, as well as photoelectrons with real proton-to-electron mass ratio so the kinetic properties in the mesothermal flow are resolved. We present simulation results of surface charging around a lunar hill at the lunar terminator region.
Recommended Citation
D. F. Han and J. J. Wang, "Numerical Simulations of Surface Charging at the Lunar Terminator," Proceedings of the 53rd AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting (2015, Kissimmee, FL), American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), Jan 2015.
The definitive version is available at https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2015-1394
Meeting Name
53rd AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting (2015: Jan. 5-9, Kissimmee, FL)
Department(s)
Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Keywords and Phrases
Aerospace engineering; Electric fields; Finite element method; Moon; Plasma interactions; Surface charge; Immersed finite elements; Kinetic properties; Kinetic simulation; Non-homogeneous; Particle-in-cell simulations; Plasma-surface interface; Surface charging; Surface plasma; Plasma simulation
International Standard Book Number (ISBN)
978-1-62410-343-8
Document Type
Article - Conference proceedings
Document Version
Accepted Manuscript
File Type
text
Language(s)
English
Rights
© 2015 Daoru Han and Joseph J. Wang, All rights reserved.
Publication Date
01 Jan 2015
