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An evidence of the existence of leptoquarks (LQ) would prove the validity of various extensions of the Standard Model of Particle Physics (SM). The search for first generation leptoquarks presented in this dissertation has been performed by analyzing a 1.02 fb{sup -1} sample of data collected by the D0 detector, events with a final state comprising two light jets and two electrons. The absence of an excess of events in comparison to SM expectations leads to exclude scalar LQ masses up to 292 GeV and vector LQ masses from 350 to 458 GeV, depending on the LQ-l-q coupling type. The great importance of a good jet energy measurement motivated the study of the instrumental backgrounds correlated to the calorimeter, as much as studies of the hadronic showers energy resolution in {gamma} + jets events.

Solar domestic hot water systems have been installed at Camp Darby and the Leghorn Army Depot near Livorno, Italy, by the United States Army. These systems range from single panel installations providing hot water to maintenance shops to large multipanel systems serving barracks. Guidance provided in this bilingual (English-Italian) report includes operating and maintenance procedures and recommendations for spare parts inventory. Operating procedures address start-up, normal operations, shut-down, and response to abnormal conditions; maintenance procedures address collector fluid drainage and replacement and equipment change-out. Flow diagrams reflecting as-built conditions are also included for many of the systems. Water quality and corrosion control are also discussed.

With data from the SELEX experiment we study charm hadro-production. We report the differential production cross sections as function of the longitudinal and transverse momentum, as well as for two different target materials, of 14 charmed hadron and/or their decay modes. This is the most extensive study to date. SELEX is a fixed target experiment at Fermilab with high forward acceptance; it took data during 1996-1997 with 600 GeV/c {Sigma}{sup -} and {pi}{sup -}, and 540 GeV/c proton and {pi}{sup +} beams. It used 5 target foils (two copper and three diamond). We use the results to determine {alpha}, used in parametrizing the production cross section as {infinity} A{sup {alpha}}, where A is the mass number of the target nuclei. We found within our statistics that {alpha} is independent of the longitudinal momentum fraction x{sub F} in the interval 0.1 < x{sub F} < 1.0, with {alpha} = 0.778 {+-} 0.014. The average value of {alpha} for charm production by pion beams is {alpha}{sub meson} = 0.850 {+-} 0.028. This is somewhat larger than the corresponding average {alpha}{sub baryon} = 0.755 {+-} 0.016 for charm production by baryon beams ({Sigma}{sup -} and protons).

Supersymmetry, extension of the Standard Model of Particle Physics (SM), is searched for by trying to observe the supersymmetric partner of bottom quark ({tilde b}). This search is performed using events with a final state comprising two acoplanar b-quark jets and missing transverse energy (MET) and coming from a sample of 992 pb{sup -1} of data collected by the D0 detector at the Tevatron, the Fermilab p{bar p} collider. The absence of an excess of events in comparison to MS expectations leads to exclude sb masses up to 201 GeV, neutralino masses up to 94 GeV. The MET has been studied under two points of view, because of its fundamental role in this search. First, at the level of the trigger system which allows the online selection candidate events, and then, within the framework of the ALPGEN generator, the simulation of the Z boson transverse momentum which appears as MET when the Z boson decays into neutrino.

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This document contains 3 reports dealing with the delayed effects of radiation on the eyes of survivors of the atomic explosions in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In the first study, 1000 persons who were listed as having been in the open and within two kilometers of the hypocenter at the time of the explosion were selected at random from the census files of the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission for study. In addition, 231 others, comprising the total available number of surviving persons listed at present in the census files as having been within one kilometer of the hypocenter, were examined, as were several hundred others who were contacted through newspaper publicity, referrals from local ophthalmologists, or through hearsay. The survey resulted in bringing in persons having, or having had, a variety of ocular conditions. Those connected with the atomic bomb included the following diagnoses; multiple injuries of eyes and eyelids; keratoconjunctivitis from ultraviolet and ionizing radiations; thermal burn of the cornea and of the retina; retinitis proliferans; and radiation cataracts. The cataracts were the only delayed manifestations of ocular injury from the atomic bomb. The second paper is a case report of a histopathologic study of atomic bomb radiation cataract. The …

In the Standard Model (SM) of the elementary particles, the interactions among the known fundamental fermions (leptons and quarks) are mediated through gauge bosons which obey the symmetry: SU(3) {circle_times} SU(2) {circle_times} U(1). More precisely, the electroweak interaction [4-6] is described by a gauge symmetry SU(2) {circle_times} U(1) which is broken spontaneously. The electroweak symmetry breaking is implemented by the introduction of a complex scalar Higgs field which has a non-zero vacuum expectation value (vev). This way, the lagrangian of the theory remains invariant under SU(2) transformations, but quantization of the fields must start from a ground state which does not exhibit this symmetry, and therefore the full symmetry of the lagrangian is not manifest. Invariance of the theory under local SU(2) transformations implies the presence of vectorial gauge fields which mediate the electroweak interactions. The so called spontaneous symmetry breaking allows the quanta of these gauge fields, the W and Z bosons, to acquire a finite mass. The photon, the particle which mediates the electromagnetic interaction, remains massless. The Higgs boson is one of only two particles in the SM which have not yet been directly observed (the other is the {nu}{sub {tau}}, although there is indirect evidence of …

The well-logging operations performed in the Miravalles Geothermal Field in Costa Rica were conducted during two separate field trips. The Phase I program provided the deployment of a suite of high-temperature borehole instruments, including the temperature/rabbit, fluid sampler, and three-arm caliper in Well PGM-3. These same tools were deployed in Well PGM-10 along with an additional survey run with a combination fluid velocity/temperature/pressure instrument used to measure thermodynamic properties under flowing well conditions. The Phase II program complemented Phase I with the suite of tools deployed in Wells PGM-5, PGM-11, and PGM-12. 4 refs., 25 figs., 1 tab.

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Six geothermal spring sites were selected on the basis of preliminary investigations conducted in Honduras over the last decade and were evaluated in terms of their development potential. Of the six, the Platanares and San Ignacio sites have high base temperatures and high surface fluid discharge rates and appear to have the best potential for further development as sources of electrical power. A third site, Azacualpa, has a high enough base temperature and discharge rate to be considered as a back-up, but the logistical problems involved in geophysical surveys make it less attractive than the two primary sites. Of the remaining three sites, Pavana may be a source of direct-use heat for local agricultural processing. Sambo Creek and El Olivar have either severe logistical problems that would impede further investigation and development or base temperatures and flow rates that are too low to warrant detailed investigation at this time.

The Swift parallel scripting language allows for the specification, execution and analysis of large-scale computations in parallel and distributed environments. It incorporates a data model for recording and querying provenance information. In this article we describe these capabilities and evaluate interoperability with other systems through the use of the Open Provenance Model. We describe Swift's provenance data model and compare it to the Open Provenance Model. We also describe and evaluate activities performed within the Third Provenance Challenge, which consisted of implementing a specific scientific workflow, capturing and recording provenance information of its execution, performing provenance queries, and exchanging provenance information with other systems. Finally, we propose improvements to both the Open Provenance Model and Swift's provenance system.

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The pyrolysis of biomass can help produce liquid transportation fuels with properties similar to those of petroleum gasoline and diesel fuel. Argonne National Laboratory conducted a life-cycle (i.e., well-to-wheels [WTW]) analysis of various pyrolysis pathways by expanding and employing the Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy Use in Transportation (GREET) model. The WTW energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the pyrolysis pathways were compared with those from the baseline petroleum gasoline and diesel pathways. Various pyrolysis pathway scenarios with a wide variety of possible hydrogen sources, liquid fuel yields, and co-product application and treatment methods were considered. At one extreme, when hydrogen is produced from natural gas and when bio-char is used for process energy needs, the pyrolysis-based liquid fuel yield is high (32% of the dry mass of biomass input). The reductions in WTW fossil energy use and GHG emissions relative to those that occur when baseline petroleum fuels are used, however, is modest, at 50% and 51%, respectively, on a per unit of fuel energy basis. At the other extreme, when hydrogen is produced internally via reforming of pyrolysis oil and when bio-char is sequestered in soil applications, the pyrolysis-based liquid fuel yield is low (15% …

In the Standard Model of particle physics, the Higgs boson generates elementary particle masses. Current theoretical and experimental constraints lead to a Higgs boson mass between 114.4 and 158 GeV with 95% confidence level. Moreover, Tevatron has recently excluded the mass ranges between 100 and 109 GeV, 158 and 175 GeV with 95% confidence level. These results gives a clear indication to search for a Higgs boson at low mass. The D0 detector is located near Chicago, at the Tevatron, a proton-antiproton collider with an energy in the center of mass of 1.96 TeV. The topic of this thesis is the search for a Higgs boson in association with a Z boson. This channel is sensitive to low mass Higgs boson (<135 GeV) which has a branching ratio H {yields} bb varies between 50% and 90% in this mass range. The decay channel ZH {yields} {nu}{bar {nu}}b{bar b} studied has in the final state 2 heavy-flavor jets and some missing transverse energy due to escaping neutrinos. The heavy-flavor jets identification ('b-tagging') is done with a new algorithm (SLTNN) developped specifically for semi-leptonic decay of b quarks. The Higgs boson search analysis was performed with 3 fb{sup -1} of data. The …

The purpose of this report is to collect in one publication and fit together work fragments presented in many conferences in the multi-year time span starting 2002 to the present dealing with the problem of large pore formation in U-Mo/Al dispersion fuel plates first observed in 2002. Hence, this report summarizes the excerpts from papers and reports on how we interpreted the relevant results from out-of-pile and in-pile tests and how this problem was dealt with. This report also provides a refined view to explain in detail and in a quantitative manner the underlying mechanism of the role of silicon in improving the irradiation performance of U-Mo/Al.

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The confirmation of the Cabibbo-suppressed charm baryon decay mode {Lambda}{sub c}{sup +} {yields} p{pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -} is reported. All data analyzed are from SELEX, a fixed target experiment at Fermilab that took data during 1996 and 1997, mainly with a 600 GeV/c {Sigma}{sup -} beam. The branching ratio of the Cabibbo-suppressed decay mode {Lambda}{sub c}{sup +} {yields} p{pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -} relative to the Cabibbo-favored mode {Lambda}{sub c}{sup +} {yields} pK{sup -}{pi}{sup +} is measured to be: {Gamma}({Lambda}{sub c}{sup +} {yields} p{pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -})/{Gamma}({Lambda}{sub c}{sup +} {yields} pK{sup -}{pi}{sup +}) = 0.103 {+-} 0.022.

In this work the S-wave component of the K{pi} amplitude from decay of D{sup +} {yields} K{sup -}{pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup +} it is directly measured. The data come from the Fermilab E831/FOCUS experiment. The amplitude measurement is made using the partial wave analysis without any preliminary assumption about the nature of the S-wave component of the K{pi} system. The phase and magnitude of the S-wave amplitude are generic functions to be determined directly through the Dalitz plot fit. For the sake of comparison, our results the same decay is analyzed using the isobar model, which is the standard way to analyze the Dalitz plot. The data fit obtained with the partial wave analysis is better than the data fit from the isobar model. The phase variation with respect to the invariant mass K{pi} is compared with the measurement of the phase {delta}{sub I=1/2}{sup 0} (m{sub K{pi}}) from K{pi} {yields} K{pi} scattering. The difference between both analysis is discussed considering: a difference in the composition of the isospin components I = 1/2 and I = 3/2 of the K{pi} system between D{sup +} decay and the K{pi} {yields} K{pi} scattering; and the final state interaction involving all particles from decay.

This thesis is dedicated to the study of the first data taken by the D0 detector during the Run II of the Tevatron. Supersymmetric particles have been search for in proton-antiproton collisions, with a center of mass energy of 1.96 TeV. In the framework of supersymmetry with R-parity violation, I have studied the pair production of Gauginos, leading to a pair of LSP ({chi}{sub 1}{sup 0}), each one decaying into ee{nu}{sub {mu}} or e{mu}{nu}{sub e} with a {lambda}{sub 121} coupling. The final state contains at least two electrons: I have thus paid special attention in this work to the methods concerning identification and mis-identification of electromagnetic particles, as well as reconstruction, triggering, and correction (of the reconstructed energy). In a selection of trileptons, with at least two electrons, and some transverse missing energy, we observed 0 event in the 350 pb{sup -1} of analyzed data, for 0,4{sub -0,05}{sup +0,35}(stat) {+-} 0,16 (sys) expected from the Standard Model contributions. In the signal considered in this analysis, the selection efficiency is around 12%. Results have been studied in two models: mSUGRA and MSSM. In mSUGRA model, limits on m{sub 1/2} and lightest gauginos's masses have been obtained, with tan{beta} = 5, A{sub …

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