Federal Grant Award Summary

The University of Hawaii at Manoa received a $686,392 Project Grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Physics under the Mathematical and Physical Sciences program (CFDA 47.049), awarded July 1, 2026, with completion targeted for June 30, 2029. The award supports a combined simulation and machine learning research initiative investigating particle acceleration mechanisms in relativistic magnetized turbulence—fundamental plasma physics processes that drive extreme cosmic environments including supermassive black hole jets, neutron star winds, and gamma-ray bursts. The research employs three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations across systematic parameter spaces in magnetization and turbulence amplitude, coupled with GPU-accelerated unsupervised machine learning (the AWESOM tool) to identify and catalog coherent plasma structures such as current sheets, vorticity sheets, and shear-velocity regions responsible for particle acceleration to non-thermal energies.

The project generates synthetic spectra, light curves, and polarization signatures derived from high-cadence particle tracking and energetic particle scattering analysis, decomposing individual particle energization histories into contributions from distinct physical mechanisms including parallel electric field acceleration, magnetic mirror reflection, and curvature drift. This research advances understanding of fundamental physics processes underlying cosmic accelerators and directly supports interpretation of astronomical observations and development of next-generation space telescopes and detectors. The award also funds integrated educational programming targeting high school and undergraduate students to broaden participation in science and technology fields.