Supermassive black holes (SMBHs) are ubiquitous in the centers of galaxies. Their formation and subsequent evolution is inextricably linked to that of their host galaxies, and the study of galaxy formation is incomplete without the inclusion of SMBHs. The present work seeks to understand the growth and evolution of SMBHs through their interaction with the host galaxy and its environment. In the first part of the thesis (Chap. 2 and 3), we combine a simple semi-analytic model of outflows from active galactic nuclei (AGN) with a simulated dark matter density distribution to study the impact of SMBH feedback on cosmological scales. We find that constraints can be placed on the kinetic efficiency of such feedback using observations of the filling fraction of the Ly{alpha} forest. We also find that AGN feedback is energetic enough to redistribute baryons over cosmological distances, having potentially significant effects on the interpretation of cosmological data which are sensitive to the total matter density distribution (e.g. weak lensing). However, truly assessing the impact of AGN feedback in the universe necessitates large-dynamic range simulations with extensive treatment of baryonic physics to first model the fueling of SMBHs. In the second part of the thesis (Chap. 4-6) we …

A measurement of hadron production cross-sections for the simulation of accelerator neutrino beams and a search for muon neutrino to electron neutrino oscillations in the {Delta}m{sup 2} {approx} 1 eV{sup 2} region. This dissertation presents measurements from two different high energy physics experiments with a very strong connection: the Hadron Production (HARP) experiment located at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland, and the Mini Booster Neutrino Experiment (Mini-BooNE) located at Fermilab in Batavia, Illinois.

This thesis presents the results of an analysis of {nu}{sub {mu}} disappearance with the MINOS experiment, which studies the neutrino beam produced by the NuMI facility at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. The rates and energy spectra of charged current {nu}{sub {mu}} interactions are measured in two similar detectors, located at distances of 1 km and 735 km along the NuMI beamline. The Near Detector provides accurate measurements of the initial beam composition and energy, while the Far Detector is sensitive to the effects of neutrino oscillations. The analysis uses data collected between May 2005 and March 2007, corresponding to an exposure of 2.5 x 10{sup 20} protons on target. As part of the analysis, sophisticated software was developed to identify muon tracks in the detectors and to reconstruct muon kinematics. Events with reconstructed tracks were then analyzed using a multivariate technique to efficiently isolate a pure sample of charged current {nu}{sub {mu}} events. An extrapolation method was also developed, which produces accurate predictions of the Far Detector neutrino energy spectrum, based on data collected at the Near Detector. Finally, several techniques to improve the sensitivity of an oscillation measurement were implemented, and a full study of the systematic uncertainties was …

Angle- and time-resolved two-photon photoemission (2PPE) was used to study systems of organic semiconductors on Ag(111). The 2PPE studies focused on electronic behavior specific to interfaces and ultrathin films. Electron time dynamics and band dispersions were characterized for ultrathin films of a prototypical n-type planar aromatic hydrocarbon, PTCDA, and representatives from a family of p-type oligothiophenes.In PTCDA, electronic behavior was correlated with film morphology and growth modes. Within a fewmonolayers of the interface, image potential states and a LUMO+1 state were detected. The degree to which the LUMO+1 state exhibited a band mass less than a free electron mass depended on the crystallinity of the layer. Similarly, image potential states were measured to have free electron-like effective masses on ordered surfaces, and the effective masses increased with disorder within the thin film. Electron lifetimes were correlated with film growth modes, such that the lifetimes of electrons excited into systems created by layer-by-layer, amorphous film growth increased by orders of magnitude by only a few monolayers from the surface. Conversely, the decay dynamics of electrons in Stranski-Krastanov systems were limited by interaction with the exposed wetting layer, which limited the barrier to decay back into the metal.Oligothiophenes including monothiophene, quaterthiophene, and …

Run IIa of the D0 experiment at the Tevatron took place between Spring 2002 and Spring 2006, collecting approximately 1.2 fb{sup -1} of data. A fundamental principal of the D0 computing model is the utilization of globally distributed computing resources as part of a grid. In particular use is made of the 'SAMGrid'. The first part of this thesis describes the work undertaken at Imperial College on several D0 distributed computing projects. These included the deployment and development of parts of the SAMGrid software suite, and participation in the Winter 2003/2004 data reprocessing effort. One of the major goals of the D0 experiment is the observation of mixing in the B{sub s}{sup 0}-meson system. The measurement of the mixing frequency is important as it can be used to constrain the CKM matrix, which describes CP violation in the Standard Model. The second part of this thesis describes the development of an opposite side flavour tagging algorithm and its calibration using B{sup +} and B{sub d}{sup 0} meson decays. The application of this algorithm to an analysis of the B{sub s}{sup 0} meson system is then described, which lead to the world's first two-sided limit on the B{sub s}{sup 0} meson …

This dissertation describes a search for the pair production of scalar top quarks, {tilde t}{sub 1}, using a luminosity of 995 pb{sup -1} of data collected in p{bar p} collisions with the D0 detector at the Fermilab Tevatron Collider at a center-of-mass energy {radical}s = 1.96 TeV. Both scalar top quarks are assumed to decay into a charm quark and a neutralino, {tilde {chi}}{sub 1}{sup 0}, where {tilde {chi}}{sub 1}{sup 0} is the lightest supersymmetric particle. This leads to a final state with two acoplanar charm jets and missing transverse energy. The yield of such events in data is found to be consistent with the expectations from known standard model processes. Sets of {tilde t}{sub 1} and {tilde {chi}}{sub 1}{sup 0} masses are excluded at the 95% confidence level that substantially extend the domain excluded by previous searches. With the theoretical uncertainty on the {tilde t}{sub 1} pair production cross section taken into account, the largest limit for m{sub {tilde t}{sub 1}} is m{sub {tilde t}{sub 1}} > 150 GeV, for m{sub {tilde {chi}}{sub 1}{sup 0}} = 65 GeV.

In this work we presented measurements of CP violation and decay rates of B decays in final states not involving a charm quark in the final state. In particular, the time-dependent CP asymmetries of decays which proceed through b {yields} s elementary transition is a particularly sensitive probe of physics beyond the Standard Model. In fact, even if the precise measurements of CP conserving and CP violating processes show the success of the CKM picture of the flavour physics, the sector of b {yields} s transitions is still not strongly constrained and leaves room for new physics contributions. In particular, we considered the decays which have the cleanest theoretical prediction within the Standard Model: B{sup 0} {yields} {phi}K{sup 0} and B{sup 0} {yields} K{sub s}{sup 0}K{sub s}{sup 0}K{sub s}{sup 0} {beta}{sub eff}{sup SM} = 0.379. We examined the former with a completely new approach with respect to the past: the study of CP violation in the whole K{sup +}K{sup -}K{sup 0} phase space through a time-dependent Dalitz plot analysis. With this approach, we simultaneously measured the CP-violating asymmetries of the {phi}KJ{sup 0}, f{sub 0}(980)K{sup 0} resonant and K{sup +}K{sup -}K{sup 0} non-resonant contributions, avoiding one of the largest uncertainties which …

This dissertation documents the development of a broadband electron spectrometer (ESM) for GeV class Laser Wakefield Accelerators (LWFA), the production of high quality GeV electron beams (e-beams) for the first time in a LWFA by using a capillary discharge guide (CDG), and a statistical analysis of CDG-LWFAs. An ESM specialized for CDG-LWFAs with an unprecedented wide momentum acceptance, from 0.01 to 1.1 GeV in a single shot, has been developed. Simultaneous measurement of e-beam spectra and output laser properties as well as a large angular acceptance (> {+-} 10 mrad) were realized by employing a slitless scheme. A scintillating screen (LANEX Fast back, LANEX-FB)--camera system allowed faster than 1 Hz operation and evaluation of the spatial properties of e-beams. The design provided sufficient resolution for the whole range of the ESM (below 5% for beams with 2 mrad divergence). The calibration between light yield from LANEX-FB and total charge, and a study on the electron energy dependence (0.071 to 1.23 GeV) of LANEX-FB were performed at the Advanced light source (ALS), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). Using this calibration data, the developed ESM provided a charge measurement as well. The production of high quality electron beams up to 1 GeV …

We present the results of two searches for new particles that couple Z bosons in p{bar p} collisions at {radical}s = 1.96 TeV using the Collider Detector at Fermilab (CDF). In the first, we search for a long-lived parent of the Z boson using a data sample with a luminosity of 163 pb{sup -1}. Finding no significant excess above background, we set a limit on a fourth generation model as a function of mass and lifetime. In the second, we search for a particle that decays to a Z boson in conjunction with jets using a data sample with a luminosity of 1.06 fb{sup -1}. Finding no significant excess above background, we set a limit on a fourth generation model as a function of mass.

The Mini-Booster neutrino experiment (MiniBooNE) at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) is designed to search for {nu}{sub {mu}} {yields} {nu}{sub e} appearance neutrino oscillations. Muon neutrino charged-current quasi-elastic (CCQE) interactions ({nu}{sub {mu}} + n {yields} {mu} + p) make up roughly 40% of our data sample, and it is used to constrain the background and cross sections for the oscillation analysis. Using high-statistics MiniBooNE CCQE data, the muon-neutrino CCQE cross section is measured. The nuclear model is tuned precisely using the MiniBooNE data. The measured total cross section is {sigma} = (1.058 {+-} 0.003 (stat) {+-} 0.111 (syst)) x 10{sup -38} cm{sup 2} at the MiniBooNE muon neutrino beam energy (700-800 MeV). {nu}{sub e} appearance candidate data is also used to search for Lorentz violation. Lorentz symmetry is one of the most fundamental symmetries in modern physics. Neutrino oscillations offer a new method to test it. We found that the MiniBooNE result is not well-described using Lorentz violation, however further investigation is required for a more conclusive result.

The thesis is organized as follows: Chapter 1 describes the theoretical framework of non-leptonic B{sub (s)}{sup 0} {yields} H{sup +}h{prime}{sup -} decays, with a simple overview of the CP violation mechanism within the Standard Model and of the most used phenomenological approaches in the evaluation of strong interaction contributions. The chapter contains also a review of the theoretical expectations and the current experimental measurements along with a discussion about the importance of studying such decays. Chapter 2 contains a general description of the Tevatron collider and of the CDF II detector. Chapter 3 is devoted to the description of the data sample used for the measurement and the method used in extracting the signal from the background. Particular attention is dedicated to the on-line trigger selection, which is crucial to collect a sample enriched in B{sub (s)}{sup 0} {yields} h{sup +}h{prime}{sup -} decays. Chapter 4 shows how the information from kinematics and particle identification was used to achieve a statistical discrimination amongst modes to extract individual measurements. The available resolutions in mass or in particle identification are separately insufficient for an event-by-event separation of B{sub (s)}{sup 0} {yields} h{sup +}h{prime}{sup -} modes. The choice of observables and the technique used …

Measurements of the inclusive diffractive Z {yields} {mu}{sup +}{mu}{sup -} cross section with gap requirement for M{sub {mu}}{sub {mu}} > 40 GeV at {radical} s = 1.96 TeV and fraction of Z bosons produced diffractively with gap requirement from Z inclusive production are presented. The measurements are performed using a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 820 pb{sup -1}, collected with the D0 detector at the Tevatron, between 2002 to 2005. A total of 39945 di-muons events are selected and final results of: {sigma}{sub Diff}{sup gap} x Br(Z/{gamma}* {yields} {mu}{sup +}{mu}{sup -}) = 4.09 {+-} 0.64(stat.) {+-} 0.88(syst.) {+-} 0.27(lumi.) pb and, R{sub Diff}{sup gap} = 1.92 {+-} 0.30(stat.) {+-} 0.41(syst.) {+-} 0.12(lumi) % are obtained. In addition, d{sigma}/d{zeta} and d{sigma}/dy distributions are presented and they are compared with diffractive montecarlo (POMWIG). A reasonable agreement is obtained in this comparation. Finally, comparison of fraction of Z bosons produced diffractively with gap requirement (gap fraction) as measured with D0 during Run I of the Tevatron is compared. A good agreement is found for gap fraction results.

A search for the muon neutrino magnetic moment was conducted using the Mini-BooNE low energy neutrino data. The analysis was performed by analyzing the elastic scattering interactions of muon neutrinos on electrons. The analysis looked for an excess of elastic scattering events above the Standard Model prediction from which a limit on the neutrino magnetic could be set. In this thesis, we report an excess of 15.3 {+-} 6.6(stat){+-}4.1(syst) {nu}{sub {mu}e} events above the expected background. At 90% C.L., we derived a limit on the muon neutrino magnetic moment of 12.7 x 10{sup -10} {micro}{sub B}. The other analysis reported in this thesis is a measurement of charged current single pion production (CC{pi}{sup +}) to charged current quasi elastic (CCQE) interactions cross sections ratio. This measurement was performed with two different fitting algorithms and the results from both fitters are consistent with each other.

Understanding single charged pion production via neutrino-nucleus charged current interaction in the neutrino energy region of a few GeV is essential for future neutrino oscillation experiments since this process is a dominant background for {nu}{sub {mu}} {yields} {nu}{sub x} oscillation measurements. There are two contributions to this process: single pion production via baryonic resonance ({nu}{sub {mu}}N {yields} {mu}{sup -} N{pi}{sup +}) and coherent pion production interacting with the entire nucleus ({nu}{sub {mu}}A {yields} {mu}{sup -} A{pi}{sup +}), where N is nucleon in the nucleus and A is the nucleus. The purpose of the study presented in this thesis is a precise measurement of charged current single charged pion productions, resonant and coherent pion productions, with a good final state separation in the neutrino energy region of a few GeV. In this thesis, we focus on the study of charged current coherent pion production from muon neutrinos scattering on carbon, {nu}{sub {mu}} {sup 12}C {yields} {mu}{sup -12}C{pi}{sup +}, in the SciBooNE experiment. This is motivated by the fact that without measuring this component first, the precise determination of resonant pion production cross section can not be achieved since the contribution of coherent pion production in the region of small muon scattering …

We present a search for standard model Higgs boson production in association with a W boson in proton-antiproton collisions (p{bar p} {yields} W{sup {+-}}H {yields} {ell}{nu}b{bar b}) at a center of mass energy of 1.96 TeV. WH candidate events have a signature of a single lepton (E{sup {+-}}/{mu}{sup {+-}}), missing transverse energy, and two jets. The search looks for candidate events in approximately 2.7 fb{sup -1} of data recorded with the CDF II detector. The high-p{sub T} lepton (e,{mu}) in the events provides a distinct signature for triggering and most of the events in the dataset come from high-p{sub t} lepton triggers. Our analysis improves on prior searches by including events recorded on the E{sub T} + 2 Jets trigger with a lepton reconstructed as an isolated high-p{sub T} charged particle. We increase the sample purity by identifying ('tagging') long-lived b-hadrons in jets. A neural network combines distinguishing kinematic information into a function optimized for WH sensitivity. The neural network output distributions are consistent with the standard model background expectations and we set limits upper limits on the rate of Higgs production. We set 95% confidence level upper limits on the WH production cross section times branching ratio for Higgs …

The author presents a measurement of p{bar p} {yields} Z{gamma} + X {yields} e{sup +}e{sup -}{gamma} + X production using proton-antiproton collisions data collected at the Collider Detector at Fermilab at a center of mass energy of 1.96 TeV. Z{gamma} production provides a direct test of the triple neutral gauge couplings. A measurement of Z{gamma} production cross section and search for anomalous ZZ{gamma} and Z{gamma}{gamma} couplings are presented. The data presented are from 1.1 fb{sup -1} of p{bar p} integrated luminosity collected at the CDF Detector. Electrons from Z decays are selected with E{sub t} > 20 Gev. Photons (E{sub t} > 7 GeV) are required to be well-separated from the electrons. There are 390 ee{gamma} candidate events found with 1.1 fb{sup -1} of data, compared to the SM prediction of 375.3 {+-} 25.2 events. The Standard Model prediction for the cross section for p{bar p} {yields} e{sup +}e{sup -}{gamma} + X production at {radical}s = 1.96 TeV is 4.5 {+-} 0.4 pb. The measured cross section is 4.7 {+-} 0.6 pb. The cross section and kinematic distributions of the ee{gamma} events are in good agreement with theoretical predictions. Limits on the ZZ{gamma} and Z{gamma}{gamma} couplings are extracted using the …

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The D0 experiment is based at the Tevatron, which is currently the world's highest-energy accelerator. The detector comprises three major subsystems: the tracking system, the calorimeter and the muon detector. Jets, seen in the calorimeter, are the most common product of the proton-proton interactions at 2TeV. This thesis is divided into two parts. The first part focuses on jets and describes the derivation of a jet energy scale using p{bar p} {yields} (Z + jets) events as a cross-check of the official D0 jet energy scale (Versions 4.2 and 5.1) which is derived using p{bar p} {yields} {gamma} + jets events. Closure tests were also carried out on the jet energy calibration as a further verification. Jets from b-quarks are commonly produced at D0, readily identified and are a useful physics tool. These require a special correction in the case where the b-jet decays via a muon and a neutrino. Thus a semileptonic correction was also derived as an addition to the standard energy correction for jets. The search for the Higgs boson is one of the largest physics programs at D0. The second part of this thesis describes a search for the Standard Model Higgs boson in the ZH …

Particle physics deals with the fundamental building blocks of matter and their interactions. The vast number of subatomic particles can be reduced to twelve fundamental fermions, which interact by the exchange of spin-1 particles as described in the Standard Model (SM) of particle physics. The SM provides the best description of the subatomic world to date, despite the fact it does not include gravitation. Following the relation {lambda} = h/p, where h is Planck's constant, for the examination of physics at subatomic scales with size {lambda} probes with high momenta p are necessary. These high energies are accessible through particle colliders. Here, particles are accelerated and brought to collision at interaction points at which detectors are installed to record these particle collisions. Until the anticipated start-up of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, the Tevatron collider at Fermilab near Chicago is the highest energy collider operating in the world, colliding protons and anti-protons at a center-of-mass energy of {radical}s = 1.96 TeV. Its two interaction points are covered by the multi purpose particle detectors D0 and CDF. During the first data-taking period, known as Run I, the Tevatron operated at a center-of-mass energy of 1.8 TeV. This run period lasted …

The neutral current neutrino-nucleon elastic interaction {nu} N {yields} {nu} N is a fundamental process of the weak interaction ideally suited for characterizing the structure of the nucleon neutral weak current. This process comprises {approx}18% of neutrino events in the neutrino oscillation experiment, MiniBooNE, ranking it as the experiment's third largest process. Using {approx}10% of MiniBooNE's available neutrino data, a sample of these events were identified and analyzed to determine the differential cross section as a function of the momentum transfer of the interaction, Q{sup 2}. This is the first measurement of a differential cross section with MiniBooNE data. From this analysis, a value for the nucleon axial mass M{sub A} was extracted to be 1.34 {+-} 0.25 GeV consistent with previous measurements. The integrated cross section for the Q{sup 2} range 0.189 {yields} 1.13 GeV{sup 2} was calculated to be (8.8 {+-} 0.6(stat) {+-} 0.2(syst)) x 10{sup -40} cm{sup 2}.

The diphoton differential cross-section as a function of mass up to 300 GeV/c{sup 2}, q{sub T} up to 100 GeV/c, and opening angle over a range of 0 to {pi} radians is measured. The measurement is performed using 1046.19 pb{sup -1} of data collected at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory using the D0 detector. This analysis considers all direct diphoton states but attempts to suppress contributions due to fragmentation.

We report on a study of the decay {bar B}{sup 0} {yields} D*{sup +} {omega}{pi}{sup -} with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II B-factory at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center. Based on a sample of 232 million B{sup 0}{bar B}{sup 0} decays collected between 1999 and 2004, we measure the branching fraction {Beta}({bar B}{sup 0} {yields} D*{sup +} {omega}{pi}{sup -}) = (2.88 {+-} 0.21(stat.) {+-} 0.31(syst.)) x 10{sup -3}. We study the invariant mass spectrum of the {omega}{pi}{sup -} system in this decay. This spectrum is in good agreement with expectations based on factorization and the measured spectrum in {tau}{sup -} {yields} {omega}{pi}{sup -} {nu}{sub {tau}}. We also measure the polarization of the D*{sup +} as a function of the {omega}{pi}{sup -} mass. In the mass region 1.1 to 1.9 GeV we measure the fraction of longitudinal polarization of the D*{sup +} to be {Lambda}{sub L}/{Lambda} = 0.654 {+-} 0.042(stat.) {+-} 0.016(syst.). This is in agreement with the expectations from heavy-quark effective theory and factorization assuming that the decay proceeds as {bar B}{sup 0} {yields} D*{sup +} {rho}(1450){sup -}, {rho}(1450){sup -} {yields} {omega}{pi}{sup -}. Furthermore, we present the results on the time-dependent CP asymmetry in neutral B meson decays to …

The authors measure the time-dependent CP asymmetry parameters in B{sup 0} {yields} K{sup +}K{sup -}K{sup 0} based on a data sample of approximately 277 million B-meson pairs recorded at the {Upsilon}(4S) resonance with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II B-meson Factory at SLAC. They reconstruct two-body B{sup 0} decays to {phi}(1020)K{sub s}{sup 0} and {phi}(1020)K{sub L}{sup 0}. Using a time-dependent maximum-likelihood fit, they measure sin2{beta}{sub eff}({phi}K{sup 0}) = 0.48 {+-} 0.28 {+-} 0.10, and C({phi}K{sup 0}) = 0.16 {+-} 0.25 {+-} 0.09, where the first error is statistical, and the second is systematic. They also present measurements of the CP-violating asymmetries in the decay B{sup 0} {yields} f{sub 0}({yields} {pi}{sup +}{pi}{sup -})K{sub s}{sup 0}. The results are obtained from a data sample of 209 x 10{sup 6} {Upsilon}(4S) {yields} B{bar B} decays, also collected with the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy B Factory at SLAC. From a time-dependent maximum-likelihood fit they measure the mixing-induced CP violation parameter S(f{sub 0}(980)K{sub S}{sup 0}) = - sin 2{beta}{sub eff}f{sub 0}(980)K{sub S}{sup 0} = -0.95{sub -0.23}{sup +0.32} {+-} 0.10 and the direct CP violation parameter C(f{sub 0}(980)K{sub S}{sup 0}) = - 0.24 {+-} 0.31 {+-} 0.15, where the first errors are statistical and …

It is now widely accepted that the Standard Model assumption of massless neutrinos is wrong, due primarily to the observation of solar and atmospheric neutrino flavor oscillations by a small number of convincing experiments. The MINOS Far Detector, capable of observing both the outgoing lepton and associated showering products of a neutrino interaction, provides an excellent opportunity to independently search for an oscillation signature in atmospheric neutrinos. To this end, a MINOS data set from an 883 live day, 13.1 kt-yr exposure collected between July, 2003 and April, 2007 has been analyzed. 105 candidate charged current muon neutrino interactions were observed, with 120.5 {+-} 1.3 (statistical error only) expected in the absence of oscillation. A maximum likelihood analysis of the observed log(L/E) spectrum shows that the null oscillation hypothesis is excluded at over 96% confidence and that the best fit oscillation parameters are sin{sup 2} 2{theta}{sub 23} = 0.95{sub -0.32} and {Delta}m{sub 23}{sup 2} = 0.93{sub -0.44}{sup +3.94} x 10{sup -3} eV{sup 2}. This measurement of oscillation parameters is consistent with the best fit values from the Super-Kamiokande experiment at 68% confidence.