Development of advanced propulsion technology: bringing energy accross scale boundaries
- Paper number
IAC-06-C4.P.5.06
- Author
Mr. Philip Venturelli, University of California, Los Angeles, United States
- Coauthor
Mr. Yuki D. Takahashi, University of Glasgow, United Kingdom
- Year
2006
- Abstract
This paper seeks to explore principles underlying new propulsion concepts which exploit energy focusing mechanisms to transfer energy between different physical scales. This is done by identifying two recent discoveries in fundamental physics and discussing their implications for propulsion and space travel. Discovery one: It is known that latent energy in the quantum vacuum (quantum vacuum radiation or zero point energy as in the Casimir effect) manifests itself as a repulsive force acting against the surfaces of two closely spaced mirrors [Lamoreaux]. This phenomenon plays an important role in expanding human understanding of physics, however its utility as a source of energy depends upon one's ability to transfer this latent energy across physical scales -- from the quantum regime to the macroscopic scale. Discovery two: It has been asserted that inertial force is the consequence of a field which develops between matter and surrounding spacetime, leading to the description of inertia as a Lorentz force [Puthoff]. Inertia can be seen as a constraint upon local curvature of spacetime, limiting the ability of a given world line to rapidly bend (or boost) away from its neighboring world lines. It would follows that the barrier between a physical theory and practical implementation of reduced inertia acceleration lies in controlling the transmission of the inertial field across boundaries of physical scale; in other words, shielding a macroscopic object from its own inertial radiation requires preventing the delocalization of inertia at the point of impulse. Given the potential importance of these discoveries, and their utility as means to enable space travel across great distances, it is appropriate that the issue of scale-transcending energy transfer should be addressed. One way to do this is to start with examples of phenomena which carry energy across different physical scales; such phenomena are characterized by, for instance, a macroscopic activation energy and a quantum-scale energy release. (One example of this is the phenomenon of sonoluminescence [Eberlin, Putterman]). A better understanding of such mechanisms could further the development of cross-scale energy conduits which could funnel energy from one physical regime into another. Another way to approach this problem would be to study the intrinsic delocalization mechanisms present in nature which tend to take local disturbances and spread them out over space and time (e.g. Huygens principle describes such a process for disturbances which transmit themselves locally; this principle is applicable to electromagnetic, acoustic, and gravitational energy). It is thought that delocalization (rather than focusing) is more commonplace in the natural world due to its entropy-favorable character. Therefore the approach of starting with energy-focusing phenomena holds promise in the interest of exploring that which is neither commonplace nor well understood. The content of this paper is a discussion of advances in both in theory and experiment for energy transfer across scales, adhering to the theme of developing advanced propulsion technology for space exploration. The ideas presented here originate from current research at UCLA (Math and Physics departments), and research at UC Berkeley (Physics and Department) on energy focusing, propulsion, and astronomy.
- Abstract document