Combining Optimization and Simulation for Next-Generation Off-Road Vehicle E/E Architectural Design.

The automotive industry, with particular reference to the off-road sector, is facing several challenges, including the integration of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADASs), the introduction of autonomous driving capabilities, and system-specific requirements that are different from the traditional car market. Current vehicular electrical-electronic (E/E) architectures are unable to support the amount of data for new vehicle functionalities, requiring the transition to zonal architectures, new communication standards, and the adoption of Drive-by-Wire technologies. In this work, we propose an automated methodology for next-generation off-road vehicle E/E architectural design.

Thermal energy density of dust in dusty plasmas: experiment and theory.

A surprising observation in dusty plasma experiments is that the dust thermal energy density, P_{d}∝n_{d}T_{d}, is typically much greater than n_{d}T_{n} (where n_{d} and T_{d} are the dust density and temperature, and T_{n} is the neutral temperature), even though the dust particles would be expected to be in thermal equilibrium with the neutrals. We show here, theoretically and experimentally, that the anomalously high dust thermal energy density can be accounted for if electrostatic interactions between the dust particles and the background plasma are taken into account. Thus, the dust pressure in dusty plasma is mostly of electrostatic origin.

Observations of a structure-forming instability in a dc-glow-discharge dusty plasma.

By adjusting the anode current and axial magnetic strength of a dc-glow-discharge dusty plasma, we have found plasma and dust conditions conducive to dusty plasma structurization, similar to the one discussed theoretically by Morfill and Tsytovich [Plasma Phys. Rep. 26, 682 (2000)].

Faster-than-Bohm cross-B electron transport in strongly pulsed plasmas.

We report the empirical discovery of an exceptionally high cross-B electron transport rate in magnetized plasmas, in which transverse currents are driven with abruptly applied high power. Experiments in three different magnetic geometries are analyzed, covering several orders of magnitude in plasma density, magnetic field strength, and ion mass. It is demonstrated that a suitable normalization parameter is the dimensionless product of the electron (angular) gyrofrequency and the effective electron-ion momentum transfer time, omega(ge)tau(EFF), by which all of diffusion, cross-resistivity, cross-B current conduction, and magnetic field diffusion can be expressed.

Laboratory observations of self-excited dust acoustic shocks.

Repeated, self-excited dust acoustic shock waves (DASWs) have been observed in a dc glow discharge dusty plasma using high-speed video imaging. Two major observations are reported: (1) The self-steepening of a nonlinear dust acoustic wave (DAW) into a saw-tooth wave with sharp gradient in dust density, very similar to those found in numerical solutions of the fully nonlinear fluid equations for a nondispersive DAW [B. Eliasson and P.