A prototype Compton scatter camera for imaging gamma rays has been built and tested. This camera addresses unique aspects of gamma-ray imaging at nuclear industrial sites, including gamma-ray energies in the 0.5 to 3.0 MeV range and polychromatic fields. Analytic models of camera efficiency, resolution and contaminating events are developed. The response of the camera bears strong similarity to emission computed tomography devices used in nuclear medicine. A direct Fourier based algorithm is developed to reconstruct two-dimensional images of measured gamma-ray fields. Iterative ART and MLE algorithms are also investigated. The point response of the camera to gamma rays of energies from 0.5 to 2.8 MeV is measured and compared to the analytic models. The direct reconstruction algorithm is at least ten times more efficient than the iterative algorithms are also investigated. The point response of the camera to gamma rays energies from 0.5 to 2.8 MeV is measured and compared to the analytic models. The direct reconstruction algorithm is at least ten times more efficient than the iterative algorithms and produces images that are, in general, of the same quality. Measured images of several phantoms are shown. Important results include angular resolutions as low as 4.4{degrees}, reproduction of phantom …

The behavior of two structural clay tile infilled frames subjected to dynamic loading is investigated. The testing was performed by USACERL using a biaxial shake table machine on which two framed infills were spaced nine feet apart and connected by steel trusses and an eight inch concrete roof slab. The infills were composed of structural clay tile block which were laid with the cores horizontal. The specimen was loaded in both the out-of-plane and in-plane directions using a site specific time history record. The testing focused on determining frame and panel load-deflection behavior, acceleration amplification, and frequency degradation characteristics. The out-of-plane tests resulted in little degradation of frequency which means there was little loss of stiffness. There was no evidence of the infill {open_quotes}walking-out{close_quotes} of the steel frame; in fact the infill still had substantial stability after completion of the out-of-plane tests. As a result of the gradual increase in ground motion in the in-plane testing, the stiffness of the specimen gradually decreased. Strength and stiffness characteristics obtained from the dynamic testing were comparable to results and behavior seen in static tests. Degradation in the panel was much more rapid under the stronger ground motions which were produced during the …

In this thesis the fundamental concepts of moderately coupled plasmas, for which 2{approx_lt}ln{Lambda}{sub b}{approx_lt}10, are, for the first time, presented. This investigation is motivated because neither the conventional Fokker-Planck approximation [for weakly coupled plasmas (ln{Lambda}{sub b}{approx_lt}10)] nor the theory of dielectric response with correlations for strongly coupled plasmas (ln{Lambda}{sub b}{approx_lt}1) has satisfactorily addressed this regime. Specifically, herein the standard Fokker-Planck operator for Coulomb collisions has been modified to include hitherto neglected terms that are directly associated with large-angle scattering. In addition a reduced electron-ion collision operator has been calculated that, for the first time, manifests 1/ln{Lambda}{sub b} corrections. Precise calculations of some relaxation rates and crude calculations of electron transport coefficients have been made. As one of major applications of the modified Fokker-Planck equation, the stopping powers and {rho}R have been calculated for charged fusion products ({alpha}`s, {sup 3}H, {sup 3}He) and hot electrons interacting with plasmas relevant to inertial confinement fusion. In the second major topic of this thesis, advances made in the area of laboratory x-ray sources are presented. First, and most importantly, through the use a Cockcroft-Walton linear accelerator, a charged particle induced x-ray emission (PIXE) source has been developed. Intense line x radiation (including K-, L-, …

Objective is to determine if conventional slow-growth methods will be successful for growing single quasicrystals in this system. Reaction schemes, isopleths, and a ternary liquidus diagram were constructed using DTA, XRD, microscopy, and energy dispersive spectroscopy. Results suggest a peak in the liquidus near the predicted compositions of Al{sub 65}Cu{sub 23}Ru{sub 12} or Al{sub 65}Cu{sub 20}Ru{sub 15} in the face-centered icosahedral phase field. Further study is needed to verify the existence of a congruently melting phase. There appears to be composition for which slow-growth methods will produce a single-quasicrystal. Directional solidification studies were done on 65Al25Cu10Ru.

The highly heterogeneous nature of most geologic media, coupled with the restricted view of the subsurface available through boreholes, makes it difficult to determine the spatial distribution of subsurface hydrologic properties. Without such a description one cannot predict how fluid flow or solute transport will occur through permeable geologic media, and these predictions are critically needed to address many important environmental problems, including toxic chemical spills, leaking underground storage tanks, and long-term radioactive waste isolation. A common concern of these problems is the possible existence of high-permeability pathways connecting the problem to the biosphere. An understanding of flow and transport behavior is also necessary to optimize energy extraction from petroleum or geothermal reservoirs, where identifying low-permeability barriers that compartmentalize reservoirs and hamper efficient resource utilization is a key problem. The present work describes the development and application of a new inverse method for determining the spatial distribution of hydrologic properties (permeability and specific storage) in heterogeneous geologic media, using pressure transients from interference well tests. The method employs fractal concepts to improve efficiency and reliability. It is applicable to any sort of heterogeneous geologic medium in which wells communicate with each other, whether it be porous, fractured, or a combination …

Two-phase cross flow over heat exchanger tubes creates vibrations which contribute greatly to the wear on the tubes. Fluidelastic instability is a major mechanism by which tubes can fail. In this work, the fluidelastic instability of a tube placed in an array subjected to two-phase cross flow has been studied. For the determination of fluidelastic instability, a triangular tube array was used. The tubes were made of acrylic and were 2.2 cm or 2.37 cm in diameter and 20 cm in length. Eighteen tubes and 4 half tubes formed 5 rows with a pitch to diameter ratio of 1.4. All of the tubes except the test tube were rigidly supported at the text section wall. The test tube was flexibly supported with two cantilever beams. By installing cantilever beams horizontally and vertically, drag and lift direction tube vibration were studied. Parameters of tube mass, structural stiffness, natural frequency, and pitch to diameter ratio were varied. The drag coefficients on a rigidly held tube in an array subjected to two-phase cross flow were measured. The tube in an array was located at displaced positions as well as at the normal position in order to study the variation of fluid force as …

Detailed studies of the growth and structure of thin films of metal oxides grown on metal single crystal surfaces using Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM) are presented. The oxide overlayer systems studied are iron oxide and titanium oxide on the Pt(III) surface. The complexity of the metal oxides and large lattice mismatches often lead to surface structures with large unit cells. These are particularly suited to a local real space technique such as scanning tunneling microscopy. In particular, the symmetry that is directly observed with the STM elucidates the relationship of the oxide overlayers to the substrate as well as distinguishing, the structures of different oxides.

In order to meet their luminosity goals, linear colliders operating in the center-of-mass energy range from 3,50 to 1,500 GeV will need to deliver beams which are as small as a few Manometers tall, with x:y aspect ratios as large as 100. The Final Focus Test Beam (FFTB) is a prototype for the final focus demanded by these colliders: its purpose is to provide demagnification equivalent to those in the future linear collider, which corresponds to a focused spot size in the FFTB of 1.7 microns (horizontal) by 60 manometers (vertical). In order to achieve the desired spot sizes, the FFTB beam optics must be tuned to eliminate aberrations and other errors, and to ensure that the optics conform to the desired final conditions and the measured initial conditions of the beam. Using a combination of incoming-beam diagnostics. beam-based local diagnostics, and global tuning algorithms, the FFTB beam size has been reduced to a stable final size of 1.7 microns by 70 manometers. In addition, the chromatic properties of the FFTB have been studied using two techniques and found to be acceptable. Descriptions of the hardware and techniques used in these studies are presented, along with results and suggestions for …

The longitudinal instability has potentially disastrous effects on the ion beams used for heavy ion driven inertial confinement fusion. This instability is a {open_quotes}resistive wall{close_quotes} instability with the impedance coining from the induction modules in the accelerator used as a driver. This instability can greatly amplify perturbations launched from the beam head and can prevent focusing of the beam onto the small spot necessary for fusion. This instability has been studied using the WARPrz particle-in-cell code. WARPrz is a 2 1/2 dimensional electrostatic axisymmetric code. This code includes a model for the impedance of the induction modules. Simulations with resistances similar to that expected in a driver show moderate amounts of growth from the instability as a perturbation travels from beam head to tail as predicted by cold beam fluid theory. The perturbation reflects off the beam tail and decays as it travels toward the beam head. Nonlinear effects cause the perturbation to steepen during reflection. Including the capacitive component of the, module impedance. has a partially stabilizing effect on the longitudinal instability. This reduction in the growth rate is seen in both cold beam fluid theory and in simulations with WARPrz. Instability growth rates for warm beams measured from …

This work is primarily concerned with the development of models for the quantum dynamics of unimolecular isomerization and photodissociation reactions. We apply the rigorous quantum methodology of a Discrete Variable Representation (DVR) with Absorbing Boundary Conditions (ABC) to these models in an attempt to explain some very surprising results from a series of experiments on vibrationally excited ketene. Within the framework of these models, we are able to identify the experimental signatures of tunneling and dynamical resonances in the energy dependence of the rate of ketene isomerization. Additionally, we investigate the step-like features in the energy dependence of the rate of dissociation of triplet ketene to form {sup 3}B{sub 1} CH{sub 2} + {sup 1}{sigma}{sup +} CO that have been observed experimentally. These calculations provide a link between ab initio calculations of the potential energy surfaces and the experimentally observed dynamics on these surfaces. Additionally, we develop an approximate model for the partitioning of energy in the products of photodissociation reactions of large molecules with appreciable barriers to recombination. In simple bond cleavage reactions like CH{sub 3}COCl {yields} CH{sub 3}CO + Cl, the model does considerably better than other impulsive and statistical models in predicting the energy distribution in the …

Numerical computation is used to investigate resistive magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) fluctuations in the reversed-field pinch (RFP) and in tokamak-like configurations driven solely by direct current (DC) helicity injection. A Lundquist number (S) scan of RFP turbulence without plasma pressure produces the weak scaling of S{sup -0.18} for the root-mean-square magnetic fluctuation level for 2.5x10{sup 3}{le}S{le}4x10{sup 4}. The temporal behavior of fluctuations and the reversal parameter becomes more regular as S is increased, acquiring a {open_quotes}sawtooth{close_quotes} shape at the largest value of S. Simulations with plasma pressure and anisotropic thermal conduction demonstrate energy transport resulting from parallel heat fluctuations. To investigate means of improving RFP energy confinement, three forms of current profile modification are tested. Radio frequency (RF) current drive is modeled with an auxiliary electron force, and linear stability calculations are used.

Rayleigh scattering of elastic waves by an inclusion is investigated and the limitations determined. In the near field of the inhomogeneity, the scattered waves are up to a factor of 300 stronger than in the far field, excluding the application of the far field Rayleigh approximation for this range. The investigation of the relative error as a function of parameter perturbation shows a range of applicability broader than previously assumed, with errors of 37% and 17% for perturbations of {minus}100% and +100%, respectively. The validity range for the Rayleigh limit is controlled by large inequalities, and therefore, the exact limit is determined as a function of various parameter configurations, resulting in surprisingly high values of up to k{sub p}R = 0.9. The nonlinear scattering problem can be solved by inverting for equivalent source terms (moments) of the scatterer, before the elastic parameters are determined. The nonlinear dependence between the moments and the elastic parameters reveals a strong asymmetry around the origin, which will produce different results for weak scattering approximations depending on the sign of the anomaly. Numerical modeling of cross hole situations shows that near field terms are important to yield correct estimates of the inhomogeneities in the vicinity …

Purpose of this study was to investigate use of XRF (x-ray fluorescence spectrometry) as a near real-time method to determine melter glass compositions. A range of glasses derived from wastewater treatment sludges associated with DOE sites was prepared. They were analyzed by XRF and wet chemistry digestion with atomic absorption/inductively coupled emission spectrometry. Results indicated good correlation between these two methods. A rapid sample preparation and analysis technique was developed and demonstrated by acquiring a sample from a pilot-scale simulated waste glass melter and analyzing it by XRF within one hour. From the results, XRF shows excellent potential as a process control tool for waste glass vitrification. Glasses prepared for this study were further analyzed for durability by toxicity characteristic leaching procedure and product consistency test and results are presented.

Laser-induced fluorescence line narrowing and non-line narrowing spectroscopic methods were applied to conformational studies of stable DNA adducts of the 7{beta}, 8{alpha}-dihydoxy-9{alpha}, l0{alpha}-epoxy-7,8,9, 10-tetrahydrobenzo[{alpha}]pyrene (anti-BPDE). Stereochemically distinct (+)-trans-, ({minus})-trans-, (+)-cis- and ({minus})-cis adducts of anti-BPDE bound to exocyclic amino group of the central guanine in an 11-mer oligonucleotide, exist in a mixture of conformations in frozen aqueous buffer matrices. The (+)-trans adduct adopts primarily an external conformation with a smaller fraction ( {approximately} 25 %) exists in a partially base-stacked conformation. Both cis adducts were found to be intercalated with significant {pi}-{pi} stacking interactions between the pyrenyl residues and the bases. Conformations of the trans-adduct of (+)-anti -BPDE in 11-mer oligonucleotides were studied as a function of flanking bases. In single stranded form the adduct at G{sub 2} or G{sub 3} (5 ft-flanking, base guanine) adopts a conformation with strong, interaction with the bases. In contrast, the adduct with a 5ft-flanking, thymine exists in a primarily helixexternal conformation. Similar differences were observed in the double stranded oligonucleotides. The nature of the 3ft-flanking base has little influence on the conformational equilibrium of the (+)-trans-anti BPDE-dG adduct. The formation and repair of BPDE-N{sup 2}-dG in DNA isolated from the skin of mice …

Various issues are discussed in interpretation of quantum mechanics. All these explorations point toward the same conclusion, that some systems are holistically connected, i.e., some composite systems have properties that cannot, even in principle, be reduced to the properties of its subsystems. This is argued to be the central metaphysical lesson of quantum theory; this will remain pertinent even if quantum mechanics gets replaced by a superior theory. Chap. 2 discusses nonlocality and rules out hidden-variable theories that approximately reproduce the perfect correlations of quantum mechanics, as well as theories that obey locality conditions weaker than those needed to derive Bell`s inequality. Chap. 3 shows that SQUID experiments can rule out non-invasive measurability if not macrorealism. Chap. 4 looks at interpretational issues surrounding decoherence, the dissipative interaction between a system and its environment. Decoherence klcan help ``modal`` interpretations pick out the desired ``preferred`` basis. Chap. 5 explores what varieties of causation can and cannot ``explain`` EPR correlations. Instead of relying on ``watered down`` causal explanations, we should instead develop new, holistic explanatory frameworks.

NMR experiments are reported for Sr{sub 2}CuO{sub 2}Cl{sub 2}, HgBa{sub 2}CuO{sub 4+d}, YNi{sub 2}B{sub 2}C and YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub 7}. NMR studies typify three different aspects of microscopic properties of HTSC. In non-superconducting antiferromagnetic (AF) prototype Sr{sub 2}CuO{sub 2}Cl{sub 2}, we used NMR to investigate Cu{sup 2+} correlated spin dynamics and AF phase transition in CuO2 layers. In the superconductors, we used NMR both to investigate the electronic properties of the Fermi-liquid in normal and superconducting states and to investigate flux lattice and flux-line dynamics in the superconducting state in presence of magnetic field. A summary of each study is given: {sup 35}Cl NMR was measured in Sr{sub 2}CuO{sub 2}Cl{sub 2} single crystals with T{sub N}=257K. {sub 35}Cl NMR relaxation rates showed crossover of Cu{sup 2+} spin dynamics from Heisenberg to XY-like correlation at 290 K well above T{sub N}. A field-dependent T{sub N} for H{perpendicular}c was observed and explained by a field-induced Ising-like anisotropy in ab plane. {sup 199}Hg NMR was measured in HgBa{sub 2}CuO{sub 4+d}. Properties of the Fermi-liquid are characterized by a single-spin fluid picture and opening of a spin pseudo-gap at q=0 above {Tc}. Below {Tc}, spin component of Knight shift decreases rapidly in agreement with …

A fully coupled thermomechanical diffusion theory describing the thermal and mechanically assisted mass transport of dilute mobile constituents in an elastic solid is extended to include the effects of elastic-plastic deformation. Using the principles of modern continuum mechanics and classical plasticity theory, balance laws and constitutive equations are derived for a continuum composed of an immobile, but deformable, parent material and a dilute mobile constituent. The resulting equations are cast into a finite element formulation for incorporation into a finite element code. This code serves as a tool for modeling thermomechanically assisted phenomena in elastic-plastic solids. A number of simplified problems for which analytical solutions can be derived are used to benchmark the theory and finite element code. Potential uses of the numerical implementation of the theory are demonstrated using two problems. Specifically, tritium diffusion in a titanium alloy and hydrogen diffusion in a multiphase stainless steel are examined.

Purpose is to understand how the mobilization, dielectric, orientation, composition, coverage, and structure of self-assembled organic monolayers on metal surfaces affects the surface reactivities and properties of these films in order to facilitate the construction of desired films. Two model systems were used: tiols at Au and aromatic acids at Pt. Surface analysis methods, including contact angle, electrochemistry, ellipsometry, infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRRAS), and x-ray photospectroscopy, were used to study the self-assembled organic monolayers on Au and Pt. IRRAS, contact angle, and electrochemistry were used to determine the surface pK{sub a} of phenylcarboxylic acids and pyridylcarboxylic acids monolayers on Pt. These techniques were also used to determine the orientation of polymethylene chain axis and the carboxylic follow the structural evolution of the chains and end group of the thiolate monolayers during formation. IRRAS was also used to assess the carboxylic acid group in terms of its possible existence as the non-hydrogen-bonded species, the hydrogen-bonded dimeric group, and the hydrogen-bonded polymeric group. These different forms of the end group were also followed vs coverage, as well as the reactivity vs solution pH. IRRAS and contact angle were used to calculate the rate constant of the esterification of carboxylic acid-terminated monolayers …

This dissertation presents the results from the crossed molecular beam studies on the dynamics of bimolecular collisions in the gas phase. The primary subjects include the interactions of alkali dimer molecules with simple molecules, and the inelastic scattering of electronically excited alkali atoms with O{sub 2}. The reaction of the sodium dimers with oxygen molecules is described in Chapter 2. Two reaction pathways were observed for this four-center molecule-molecule reaction, i.e. the formations of NaO{sub 2} + Na and NaO + NaO. NaO{sub 2} products exhibit a very anisotropic angular distribution, indicating a direct spectator stripping mechanism for this reaction channel. The NaO formation follows the bond breaking of O{sub 2}, which is likely a result of a charge transfer from Na{sub 2} to the excited state orbital of O{sub 2}{sup {minus}}. The scattering of sodium dimers from ammonium and methanol produced novel molecules, NaNH{sub 3} and Na(CH{sub 3}OH), respectively. These experimental observations, as well as the discussions on the reaction dynamics and the chemical bonding within these molecules, will be presented in Chapter 3. The lower limits for the bond dissociation energies of these molecules are also obtained. Finally, Chapter 4 describes the energy transfer between oxygen molecules and …

The weak van der Waals interaction between an open-shell halogen atom and a closed-shell atom or molecule has been investigated using zero electron kinetic energy (ZEKE) spectroscopy. This technique is also applied to study the low-lying electronic states in GaAs and GaAs{sup {minus}}. In addition, the spectroscopy and electron detachment dynamics of several small carbon cluster anions are studied using resonant multiphoton detachment spectroscopy.

This dissertation derives a new method for estimating current source amplitudes in the brain and heart from external magnetic field measurements and prior knowledge about the probable source positions and amplitudes. The minimum mean square error estimator for the linear inverse problem with statistical prior information was derived and is called the optimal constrained linear inverse method (OCLIM). OCLIM includes as special cases the Shim-Cho weighted pseudoinverse and Wiener estimators but allows more general priors and thus reduces the reconstruction error. Efficient algorithms were developed to compute the OCLIM estimate for instantaneous or time series data. The method was tested in a simulated neuromagnetic imaging problem with five simultaneously active sources on a grid of 387 possible source locations; all five sources were resolved, even though the true sources were not exactly at the modeled source positions and the true source statistics differed from the assumed statistics.

This thesis describes a new method for the numerical solution of partial differential equations of the parabolic type on an adaptively refined mesh in two or more spatial dimensions. The method is motivated and developed in the context of the level set formulation for the curvature dependent propagation of surfaces in three dimensions. In that setting, it realizes the multiple advantages of decreased computational effort, localized accuracy enhancement, and compatibility with problems containing a range of length scales.

Investigations of electronic and optical properties of semiconductors often require specimens with extremely homogeneous dopant distributions and precisely controlled net-carrier concentrations and compensation ratios. The previous difficulties in fabricating such samples are overcome as reported in this thesis by growing high-purity Ge single crystals of controlled {sup 75}Ge and {sup 70}Ge isotopic compositions, and doping these crystals by the neutron transmutation doping (NTD) technique. The resulting net-impurity concentrations and the compensation ratios are precisely determined by the thermal neutron fluence and the [{sup 74}Ge]/[{sup 70}Ge] ratios of the starting Ge materials, respectively. This method also guarantees unprecedented doping uniformity. Using such samples the authors have conducted four types of electron (hole) transport studies probing the nature of (1) free carrier scattering by neutral impurities, (2) free carrier scattering by ionized impurities, (3) low temperature hopping conduction, and (4) free carrier transport in samples close to the metal-insulator transition.

A review of spectroscopic imaging issues, applications, and technology is presented. Compton cameras based on solid state semiconductor detectors stands out as the best system for the nondestructive assay of special nuclear materials. A camera for this application has been designed based on an efficient specific purpose Monte Carlo code developed for this project. Preliminary experiments have been performed which demonstrate the validity of the Compton camera concept and the accuracy of the code. Based on these results, a portable prototype system is in development. Proposed future work is addressed.