Mark Eric Dieckmann

Research Interests

I perform particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations on massively parallel PC clusters and I analyse and visualize the multi-dimensional data. The particle-in-cell simulation method approximates a plasma by an ensemble of computational particles, which are coupled through the Maxwell equations to electromagnetic fields. Particles can move through a phase space with up to 6 independent dimensions (three position and three velocity coordinates) and they interact only electromagnetically. The high dimensional phase space path of each computational particle and the approximation of the plasma by billions of such particles, which are followed over tens of thousands of time steps, constitute a challenge to data reduction, analysis and storage methods as well as to the data visualization. I have examined in the past the interaction of antennas with plasma, the thermalization of fast beams of charged particles through plasma instabilities in the context of astrophysical plasma scenarios, e.g. plasma jets and shocks. More recently, I have started to examine processes that take place in laser-generated plasma, which are relevant for example to inertial confinement fusion.
I perform this work in collaboration with the Centre for Plasma Physics (CPP) at the Queen's University Belfast (UK) and with ETSI Industriales at the Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha (Spain).
My publications in journals, which are listed on the web of science, and the citation statistics are listed here: Researcher ID C-8591-2009 . The full record including conference proceedings can be found here .

Teaching 2011-2012.

Introduction to computer graphics / spring 2011: TNM046 v2-2011
Advanced global illumination and rendering / autumn 2011: TNCG15 h1-2011

Permanent positions.

Docent (Associate Professor)	Since 2009-04-29
Universitetslektor (Senior Lecturer)	2000-10-01 to 2009-04-28

Temporary research positions.

PostDoc, Theoretical Physics IV, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany.	2008-09-01 to 2009-02-28
PostDoc, Theoretical Physics IV, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany.	2005-10-01 to 2007-09-30
PostDoc, Theoretical Physics IV, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany.	2004-06-01 to 2005-03-31
PostDoc, Theoretical Physics IV, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany.	2004-01-01 to 2004-03-31
PostDoc, Theoretical Physics IV, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany.	2003-09-01 to 2003-10-31
PostDoc, Department of Science and Technology (ITN), Sweden.	1999-10-01 to 2000-09-30
PostDoc, Department of Physics, University of Warwick, UK.	1999-04-01 to 1999-09-30
PhD student, Department of Physics, University of Warwick, UK.	1995-10-01 to 1999-03-31

Visiting Scientist (1 month or more).

ETSI Industriales, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, Spain.	June 2009, 2010, 2011
Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS), Dublin, Ireland	1 month p.a. from 2004-2010
Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, UC Santa Barbara, USA	August 2009
Centre for Plasma Physics (CPP), Queen's University Belfast, UK.	2008-07-31 to 2008-10-31
The Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), Trieste, Italy	August 2007
Laboratoire de Physique et Chimie de l'Environnement et de l'Espace (LPCE), CNRS-Orleans, France.	1996-10-01 to 1997-06-30

Invited presentations.

4ieme Forum ILP ”Lasers and Plasmas”, February 2011, Praz sur Arly, France. Title: Energy dissipation processes in the transition layers of astrophysical shocks.

36th EPS Conference on Controlled Fusion and Plasma Physics June 2009, Sofia, Bulgaria . Title: Filamentation instability driven by warm electron beams: Statistics and electrostatic field generation.

Workshop on kinetic modeling of astrophysical plasma, October 2008, Krakow, Poland. Title: Formation of a relativistic partially electromagnetic planar plasma shock.

International Workshop on the Frontiers of Modern Plasma Physics, July 2008, Trieste, Italy. Title: Filamentation Instability of Counterpropagating Charged Particle Beams.

WISER Workshop on Space Environment Turbulence (ALFVEN 2007), September 2007, Warsaw, Poland.. Title: Relativistic ion phase space structures in PIC simulations.

GRB Mini Symposium, September 2006, Stockholm, Sweden . Title: Wakefield acceleration in ultrarelativistic plasma flows: Electron acceleration to cosmic ray energies.

33rd EPS Conference on Controlled Fusion and Plasma Physics, June 2006, Rome, Italy . Title: Microphysics of Collision-less Shocks and Foreshock: Observations Versus Simulation.

Projects.

Project page under construction.

Acknowledgements.

My current research is funded by Vetenskapsradet through a project grant (VR Dnr: 2010-4063 / LiU Dnr: 2010-00069) and through computer time allocations by the Swedish National Infrastructure for Computing on the large-scale PC clusters at the High-Performance Computer Centre North (HPC2N).