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This dissertation develops diverse research on small (diameter {approx} few mm), high current density (J {approx} several tens of mA/cm{sup 2}) heavy ion sources. The research has been developed in the context of a programmatic interest within the Heavy Ion Fusion (HIF) Program to explore alternative architectures in the beam injection systems that use the merging of small, bright beams. An ion gun was designed and built for these experiments. Results of average current density yield (<J>) at different operating conditions are presented for K{sup +} and Cs{sup +} contact ionization sources and potassium aluminum silicate sources. Maximum <J> values for a K{sup +} beam of {approx}90 mA/cm{sup 2} were observed in 2.3 {micro}s pulses. Measurements of beam intensity profiles and emittances are included. Measurements of neutral particle desorption are presented at different operating conditions which lead to a better understanding of the underlying atomic diffusion processes that determine the lifetime of the emitter. Estimates of diffusion times consistent with measurements are presented, as well as estimates of maximum repetition rates achievable. Diverse studies performed on the composition and preparation of alkali aluminosilicate ion sources are also presented. In addition, this work includes preliminary work carried out exploring the viability …

The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) operates a number of research and development (R&D) facilities for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford Site, Washington. These facilities are subject to Clean Air Act regulations that require sampling of radionuclide air emissions from some of these facilities. A revision to an American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standard on sampling radioactive air emissions has recently been incorporated into federal and state regulations and a re-evaluation of affected facilities is being performed to determine the impact. The revised standard requires a well-mixed sampling location that must be demonstrated through tests specified in the standard. It also carries a number of maintenance requirements, including inspections and cleaning of the sampling system. Evaluations were performed in 2000 – 2002 on two PNNL facilities to determine the operational and design impacts of the new requirements. The evaluation included inspection and cleaning maintenance activities plus testing to determine if the current sampling locations meet criteria in the revised standard. Results show a wide range of complexity in inspection and cleaning activities depending on accessibility of the system, ease of removal, and potential impact on building operations (need for outages). As expected, these High Efficiency Particulate Air …

This dissertation presents results of experiment E94-010 performed at Jefferson Laboratory (simply known as JLab) in Hall A. The experiment aimed to measure the low Q{sup 2} evolution of the Gerasimov-Drell-Hearn (GDH) integral from Q{sup 2} = 0.1 to 0.9 GeV{sup 2}. The GDH sum rule at the real photon point provides an important test of Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD). The low Q{sup 2} evolution of the GDH integral contests various resonance models, Chiral Perturbation Theory ({chi}#31;PT) and lattice QCD calculations, but more importantly, it helps us understand the transition between partonic and hadronic degrees of freedom. At high Q{sup 2}, beyond 1 GeV{sup 2}, the difference of the GDH integrals for the proton and the neutron is related to the Bjorken sum rule, another fundamental test of QCD. In addition, results of the measurements for the spin structure functions g{sub 1} and g{sub 2}, cross sections, and asymmetries are presented. E94-010 was the first experiment of its kind at JLab. It used a high-pressure, polarized {sup 3}He target with a gas pressure of 10 atm and average target polarization of 35%. For the first time, the polarized electron source delivered an average beam polarization of 70% with a beam current …

Hadron production cross sections are calculated in the perturbative QCD frame work. Parton distribution functions are obtained from a strip-soliton model. The fragmentation functions are derived from the Lund model of string breaking.

A digital network of 24 seismograph stations was operated from September 15, 1987 to September 30, 1988, by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Unocal as part of the Salton Sea Scientific Drilling Project to study seismicity related to tectonics and geothermal activity near the drilling site. More than 2001 microearthquakes were relocated in this study in order to image any pervasive structures that may exist within the Salton Sea geothermal field. First, detailed velocity models were obtained through standard 1-D inversion techniques. These velocity models were then used to relocate events using both single event methods and Double-Differencing, a joint hypocenter location method. An anisotropic velocity model was built from anisotropy estimates obtained from well logs within the study area. During the study period, the Superstition wills sequence occurred with two moderate earthquakes of MS 6.2 and MS 6.6. These moderate earthquakes caused a rotation of the stress field as observed from the inversion of first motion data from microearthquakes at the Salton Sea geothermal field. Coulomb failure analysis also indicates that microearthquakes occurring after the Superstition Hills sequence are located within a region of stress increase suggesting stress triggering caused by the moderate earthquakes.

Enhanced field emission (EFE) presents the main impediment to higher acceleration gradients in superconducting niobium (Nb) radiofrequency cavities for particle accelerators. The strength, number and sources of EFE sites strongly depend on surface preparation and handling. The main objective of this thesis project is to systematically investigate the sources of EFE from Nb, to evaluate the best available surface preparation techniques with respect to resulting field emission, and to establish an optimized process to minimize or eliminate EFE. To achieve these goals, a scanning field emission microscope (SFEM) was designed and built as an extension to an existing commercial scanning electron microscope (SEM). In the SFEM chamber of ultra high vacuum, a sample is moved laterally in a raster pattern under a high voltage anode tip for EFE detection and localization. The sample is then transferred under vacuum to the SEM chamber equipped with an energy-dispersive x-ray spectrometer for individual emitting site characterization. Compared to other systems built for similar purposes, this apparatus has low cost and maintenance, high operational flexibility, considerably bigger scan area, as well as reliable performance. EFE sources from planar Nb have been studied after various surface preparation, including chemical etching and electropolishing, combined with ultrasonic …

Jefferson Lab kaon experiments E91016/E93018 produced data on both strangeness and vector meson electroproduction. The latter part of the experiments was focused on the electroproduction of the omega meson for momentum transfer Q 2 near 0.5 (GeV/c) 2. This reaction was selected from the inelastic ep channel, H-1 (e, e' p)X, by performing involved signal background separation. Tagging the omega meson production only on electron and proton not only introduced appreciable statistical error but also a sizeable systematic uncertainty due to the background removal. Nevertheless, the analysis yielded angular distributions of the differential cross section in the threshold regime extracted with an unprecedented granularity and relatively small errors.

The renaissance of Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) and soft x-ray (SXR) optics in recent years is mainly driven by the desire of printing and observing ever smaller features, as in lithography and microscopy. This attribute is complemented by the unique opportunity for element specific identification presented by the large number of atomic resonances, essentially for all materials in this range of photon energies. Together, these have driven the need for new short-wavelength radiation sources (e.g. third generation synchrotron radiation facilities), and novel optical components, that in turn permit new research in areas that have not yet been fully explored. This dissertation is directed towards advancing this new field by contributing to the characterization of spatial coherence properties of undulator radiation and, for the first time, introducing Fourier optical elements to this short-wavelength spectral region. The first experiment in this dissertation uses the Thompson-Wolf two-pinhole method to characterize the spatial coherence properties of the undulator radiation at Beamline 12 of the Advanced Light Source. High spatial coherence EUV radiation is demonstrated with appropriate spatial filtering. The effects of small vertical source size and beamline apertures are observed. The difference in the measured horizontal and vertical coherence profile evokes further theoretical studies on …

Exploration of the alkali metal/alkaline-earth metal/heavy tetrel (Sn or Pb) systems has revealed a vast array of new chemistry and novel structure types. The structures and properties of these new materials have been studied in an attempt to understand the chemistry of these and other related systems. The first phase reported is Rb{sub 4}Pb{sub 9} (K{sub 4}Pb{sub 9} type). The compound contains two different types of Pb{sub 9}{sup 4-} deltahedra, a monocapped square pyramid and a distorted tricapped trigonal prism. Both cluster geometries correspond to a nido assignment even though the tricapped trigonal prism is not the classic Wade's rules nido deltahedron expected for a monocapped square antiprism. Also, a series of compounds that contain square pyramidal Tt{sub 5} polyanions of tin and lead has been obtained in alkaline-earth or rare-earth metal-tetrel systems by direct fusion of the elements to yield Sr{sub 3}Sn{sub 5}, Ba{sub 3}Pb{sub 5}, and La{sub 3}Sn{sub 5}. These phases contain square pyramidal clusters of the tetrel elements that are weakly interlinked into chains via two types of longer intercluster interactions that are mediated by bridging cations and substantially influenced by cation size and the free electron count. Attempts at incorporating another main-group element to form heteroatomic …

Solute segregation to ceramic grain boundaries governs material processing and microstructure evolution, and can strongly influence material properties critical to engineering performance. Understanding the evolution and implications of grain boundary chemistry is a vital component in the greater effort to engineer ceramics with controlled microstructures. This study examines solute segregation to engineered grain boundaries in titanium-doped sapphire (Al2O3) bicrystals, and explores relationships between grain boundary structure and chemistry at the nanometer scale using spectroscopic and imaging techniques in the transmission electron microscope (TEM). Results demonstrate dramatic changes in solute segregation stemming from small fluctuations in grain boundary plane and structure. Titanium and silicon solute species exhibit strong tendencies to segregate to non-basal and basal grain boundary planes, respectively. Evidence suggests that grain boundary faceting occurs in low-angle twis t boundaries to accommodate nonequilibrium solute segregation related to slow specimen cooling rates, while faceting of tilt grain boundaries often occurs to expose special planes of the coincidence site lattice (CSL). Moreover, quantitative analysis of grain boundary chemistry indicates preferential segregation of charged defects to grain boundary dislocations. These results offer direct proof that static dislocations in ionic materials can assume a net charge, and emphasize the importance of interactions between charged …

This dissertation presents the development of the novel mechanical testing technique of in situ nanoindentation in a transmission electron microscope (TEM). This technique makes it possible to simultaneously observe and quantify the mechanical behavior of nano-scale volumes of solids.

Low temperature Nonphotochemical Hole Burning (NPHB) Spectroscopy of the dye rhodamine 800 (MF680) was applied for the purpose of discerning differences between cultured normal and carcinoma ovarian surface epithelial (OSE) cells. Both the cell lines were developed and characterized at the Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN), with the normal cell line having been transfected with a strain of temperature sensitive Simian Virus 40 Large T Antigen (SV40) for the purpose of extending the life of the cell culture without inducing permanent changes in the characteristics of the cell line. The cationic lipophilic fluorophore rhodamine 800 preferentially locates in in situ mitochondria due to the high lipid composition of mitochondria and the generation of a large negative membrane potential (relative to the cellular cytoplasm) for oxidative phosphorylation. Results presented for NPHB of MF680 located in the cells show significant differences between the two cell lines. The results are interpreted on the basis of the NPHB mechanism and characteristic interactions between the host (cellular mitochondrial) and the guest (MF680) in the burning of spectral holes, thus providing an image of the cellular ultrastructure. Hole growth kinetics (HGK) were found to differ markedly between the two cell lines, with the carcinoma cell line burning …

this research has shown that it is possible to deposit coatings of gas atomized Cu{sub 47}Ti{sub 33}Zr{sub 11}Ni{sub 8}Si{sub 1} powders containing various levels of oxygen contamination using plasma arc spray methods. The structure of the coating was found to depend primarily on the spray environment, with an argon atmosphere producing the most amorphous samples for a given starting powder. The oxygen content of the coatings reflected the relative levels of the oxygen contamination in the starting powders. The analysis of the starting powders displayed oxygen contents ranging from 0.125-0.79 wt.%. It was shown that higher oxygen levels lead to more crystalline structure in the starting powders as determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). This trend was found to be true for both the starting powders and for the plasma sprayed coatings. Chemical composition for all starting powders was very close to the nominal alloy composition. Chemical changes in the coatings involved the loss of Cu in coatings where high levels of oxidation were found. Cavitation erosion testing of selected coatings showed a weak trend that coatings prepared by vacuum plasma spray (VPS) had lower damage rates, but there was no clear data to indicate which …

This thesis contains the candidate's original work on excitonic structure and energy transfer dynamics of two bacterial antenna complexes as studied using spectral hole-burning spectroscopy. The general introduction is divided into two chapters (1 and 2). Chapter 1 provides background material on photosynthesis and bacterial antenna complexes with emphasis on the two bacterial antenna systems related to the thesis research. Chapter 2 reviews the underlying principles and mechanism of persistent nonphotochemical hole-burning (NPHB) spectroscopy. Relevant energy transfer theories are also discussed. Chapters 3 and 4 are papers by the candidate that have been published. Chapter 3 describes the application of NPHB spectroscopy to the Fenna-Matthews-Olson (FMO) complex from the green sulfur bacterium Prosthecochloris aestuarii; emphasis is on determination of the low energy vibrational structure that is important for understanding the energy transfer process associated within three lowest energy Qy-states of the complex. The results are compared with those obtained earlier on the FMO complex from Chlorobium tepidum. In Chapter 4, the energy transfer dynamics of the B800 molecules of intact LH2 and B800-deficient LH2 complexes of the purple bacterium Rhodopseudomonas acidophila are compared. New insights on the additional decay channel of the B800 ring of bacteriochlorophyll a (BChl a) molecules …

The ideal structural steel combines high strength with high fracture toughness. This dissertation discusses the toughening mechanism of the Fe/Co/Ni/Cr/Mo/C steel, AerMet 100, which has the highest toughness/strength combination among all commercial ultrahigh strength steels. The possibility of improving the toughness of this steel was examined by considering several relevant factors.

Alkali metal aluminohydrides have high potential as solid hydrogen storage materials. They have been known for their irreversible dehydrogenation process below 100 atm until Bogdanovic et al [1, 2] succeeded in the re-hydrogenation of NaAlH{sub 4} below 70 atm. They achieved 4 wt.% H{sub 2} reversible capacity by doping NaAlH{sub 4} with Ti and/or Fe organo-metalic compounds as catalysts. This suggests that other alkali and, possibly alkaline earth metal aluminohydrides can be used for reversible hydrogen storage when modified by proper dopants. In this research, Zr{sub 27}Ti{sub 9}Ni{sub 38}V{sub 5}Mn{sub 16}Cr{sub 5}, LaNi{sub 4.85}Sn{sub 0.15}, Al{sub 3}Ti, and PdCl{sub 2} were combined with LiAlH{sub 4} by ball-milling to study whether or not LiAlH{sub 4} is capable to both absorb and desorb hydrogen near ambient conditions. X-ray powder diffraction, differential thermal analysis, and scanning electron microscopy were employed for sample characterizations. All four compounds worked as catalysts in the dehydrogenation reactions of both LiAlH{sub 4} and Li{sub 3}AlH{sub 6} by inducing the decomposition at lower temperature. However, none of them was applicable as catalyst in the reverse hydrogenation reaction at low to moderate hydrogen pressure.

The properties of both carbon and gold substrates are easily affected by the judicious choice of a surface modification protocol. Several such processes for altering surface composition have been published in literature. The research presented in this thesis primarily focuses on the development of on-column methods to modify carbon stationary phases used in electrochemically modulated liquid chromatography (EMLC). To this end, both porous graphitic carbon (PGC) and glassy carbon (GC) particles have been modified on-column by the electroreduction of arenediazonium salts and the oxidation of arylacetate anions (the Kolbe reaction). Once modified, the carbon stationary phases show enhanced chromatographic performance both in conventional liquid chromatographic columns and EMLC columns. Additionally, one may also exploit the creation of aryl films to by electroreduction of arenediazonium salts in the creation of nanostructured materials. The formation of mercaptobenzene film on the surface of a GC electrode provides a linking platform for the chemisorption of gold nanoparticles. After deposition of nanoparticles, the surface chemistry of the gold can be further altered by self-assembled monolayer (SAM) formation via the chemisorption of a second thiol species. Finally, the properties of gold films can be altered such that they display carbon-like behavior through the formation of benzenehexathiol …

Fe{sub 2}VAl has recently been discovered to have a negative temperature coefficient of resistivity, moderately enhanced specific heat coefficient, and a large DOS at the Fermi level by photoemission. This triggered a round of heated research to understand the ground state of this material, both theoretically and experimentally. here they report a comprehensive characterization of Fe{sub 2}VAl. X-ray diffraction exhibited appreciable antisite disorder in all of our samples. FTIR spectroscopy measurements showed that the carrier density and scattering time had little sample-to-sample variation or temperature dependence for near-stoichiometric samples. FTIR and DC resistivity suggest that the transport properties of Fe{sub 2}VAl are influenced by both localized and delocalized carriers, with the former primarily responsible for the negative temperature coefficient of resistivity. Magnetization measurements reveal that near-stoichiometric samples have superparamagnetic clusters with at least two sizes of moments. X-ray photoemission from Fe core level showed localized magnetic moments on site-exchanged Fe. They conclude that in Fe{sub 2}VAl, antisite disorder causes significant modification to the semi-metallic band structure proposed by LDA calculations. With antisite disorder considered, they are now able to explain most of the physical properties of Fe{sub 2}VAl.

The computational part of the thesis is the investigation of titanium chloride (II) as a potential catalyst for the bis-silylation reaction of ethylene with hexaclorodisilane at different levels of theory. Bis-silylation is an important reaction for producing bis(silyl) compounds and new C-Si bonds, which can serve as monomers for silicon containing polymers and silicon carbides. Ab initio calculations on the steps involved in a proposed mechanism are presented. This choice of reactants allows them to study this reaction at reliable levels of theory without compromising accuracy. The calculations indicate that this is a highly exothermic barrierless reaction. The TiCl{sub 2} catalyst removes a 50 kcal/mol activation energy barrier required for the reaction without the catalyst. The first step is interaction of TiCl{sub 2} with ethylene to form an intermediate that is 60 kcal/mol below the energy of the reactants. This is the driving force for the entire reaction. Dynamic correlation plays a significant role because RHF calculations indicate that the net barrier for the catalyzed reaction is 50 kcal/mol. They conclude that divalent Ti has the potential to become an important industrial catalyst for silylation reactions. In the programming part of the thesis, parallelization of different quantum chemistry methods is …

Inclusive transverse momentum spectra of photons and {pi}{sup 0}s at mid-rapidity are studied as a function of collision centrality for {sup 197}Au+ {sup 197}Au collisions at {radical}s{sub NN} = 130 GeV. Photon pair conversions have been reconstructed from charged tracks measured by the main Time Project Chamber of the STAR experiment at the RHIC heavy ion facility. The transverse momentum resolution of photons with this method is estimated to be {Delta}p{sub t}/p{sub t} = 2% at 0.125 GeV/c and 5% at 2.5 GeV/c. Photon spectra were measured up to a transverse momentum of 2.4 GeV/c between {+-} 0.5 units of rapidity. The dominant photon production mechanism, the {pi}{sup 0} {yields} {gamma}{gamma} decay, was measured between 0.25-2.5 GeV/c and {+-} 1 units of rapidity. Spectra are reported for the top 11%, 11-34% and 34-85% centrality classes. It was observed that in mid-central and central collisions the relative contribution of the {pi}{sup 0} {yields} {gamma}{gamma} decay to the inclusive photon spectrum decreases above a transverse momentum of 1.65 GeV/c. In central collisions the magnitude of the decrease from p{sub t} = 1.65 GeV/c to 2.4 GeV/c is 20%. It is unlikely that contributions from other {pi}{sup 0} decay channels and other particle …

Magneto resistive memories (MRAM) are non-volatile memories which use magnetic instead of electrical structures to store data. These memories, apart from being non-volatile, offer a possibility to achieve densities better than DRAMs and speeds faster than SRAMs. MRAMs could potentially replace all computer memory RAM technologies in use today, leading to future applications like instan-on computers and longer battery life for pervasive devices. Such rapid development was made possible due to the recent discovery of large magnetoresistance in Spin tunneling junction devices. Spin tunneling junctions (STJ) are composite structures consisting of a thin insulating layer sandwiched between two magnetic layers. This thesis research is targeted towards these spin tunneling junction based Magnetic memories. In any memory, some kind of an interface circuit is needed to read the logic states. In this thesis, four such circuits are proposed and designed for Magnetic memories (MRAM). These circuits interface to the Spin tunneling junctions and act as sense amplifiers to read their magnetic states. The physical structure and functional characteristics of these circuits are discussed in this thesis. Mismatch effects on the circuits and proper design techniques are also presented. To demonstrate the functionality of these interface structures, test circuits were designed and …

In this work, the authors have undertaken a theoretical approach to the complex problem of modeling the flow of electromagnetic waves in photonic crystals. The focus is to address the feasibility of using the exciting phenomena of photonic gaps (PBG) in actual applications. The authors start by providing analytical derivations of the computational electromagnetic methods used in their work. They also present a detailed explanation of the physics underlying each approach, as well as a comparative study of the strengths and weaknesses of each method. The Plane Wave expansion, Transfer Matrix, and Finite Difference time Domain Methods are addressed. They also introduce a new theoretical approach, the Modal Expansion Method. They then shift the attention to actual applications. They begin with a discussion of 2D photonic crystal wave guides. The structure addressed consists of a 2D hexagonal structure of air cylinders in a layered dielectric background. Comparison with the performance of a conventional guide is made, as well as suggestions for enhancing it. The studies provide an upper theoretical limit on the performance of such guides, as they assumed no crystal imperfections and non-absorbing media. Next, they study 3D metallic PBG materials at near infrared and optical wavelengths. The main …

Industrial synthesis of sulfur-containing organic chemicals basically focuses on the broad categories of mercaptans (thiols), alkylsulfides (thioethers), polysulfides, and thiophenes. Of the organo-sulfur compounds produced, by far the most important in terms of quantities produced is methyl mercaptan (methanethiol or MeSH), which is produced mainly for the downstream production of methionine and methanesulfonyl chloride. Higher thiols are also used in the manufacture of rubber and plastics as polymerization regulators, chain transfer agents, or initiators. Other important organosulfur chemicals are dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and dimethyl disulfide (DMDS), both of which are used extensively for presulfiding of industrial hydroprocessing catalysts, and substituted thiophenes which are used as intermediates for production of agrochemicals, dyes, and pharmaceuticals. Thiols are produced commercially at the rate of about 10{sup 4} ton/yr from hydrogen sulfide (H{sub 2}S) and alcohols or olefins, using homogeneous free-radical synthesis, or heterogeneous catalysts based on solid acids or supported metal oxides and/or sulfides. Despite this large production rate, and the industrial importance of the organosulfur compounds, only limited research has been devoted to the development of new catalytic materials for their synthesis. Additionally, for most organosulfur catalytic reactions, only limited information exists about reaction mechanisms, active sites, adsorbed surface species, and especially …