Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Material Evaluation By Pulsed Diode Laser Optoacoustics, Xiaodong Xu

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Pulsed diode laser optoacoustic diagnostics were carried out to characterize solid sample materials. The apparatus developed is compact, portable, cost-effective and therefore very promising for both industrial as well as laboratory applications. To our knowledge, this is the first time that optoacoustic characterization and measurement have been performed with a diode laser. The method was successfully applied to measure the thickness of a multilayer structure non-intrusively. Internal cracks of the material were detected by this technique.

A theory for optoacoustic signal generation, propagation and detection is given. A numerical analysis technique is developed to solve for the expected signal. In …

Evolution Of A Plasma Waveguide Created During Relativistic-Ponderomotive Self-Channeling Of An Intense Laser Pulse, Shouyuan Chen, G.S. Sarkisov, Anatoly Maksimchuk, R. Wagner, Donald P. Umstadter

Donald Umstadter Publications

An on-axis plasma density depression channel was observed during and after the passage of a relativistically and ponderomotively self-guided laser pulse through a plasma. Optical interferometry was used to produce time-resolved plasma density distributions, revealing the formation of a plasma waveguide. These results were complemented by the guiding of a collinear trailing pulse.

Perc Report 1998 - Research In Physics Education Group, University Of Nebraska - Lincoln

Research in Physics Education Group

The work of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Research in Physics Education Group has two main thrusts. One is to examine student reasoning and the other is to use multiple forms of media to improve the teaching and learning of physics. Multiple projects are underway in the summer of 1998 which are related to these interests.

Valence Intersubband Lasers With Inverted Light-Hole Effective Mass, Greg Sun, Y. Lu, Jacob B. Khurgin

Physics Faculty Publications

We propose a novel intersubband laser based on transition between the ground-state heavy-hole subband (HH1) and light-hole subband (LH1) in a k-space region where the light-hole effective mass is inverted. The laser structure can be electrically pumped with a simple quantum cascade scheme. Our calculation shows that with only a small fraction of the carrier population in the upper subband (LH1), it is possible to achieve population inversion between the two subbands locally in K space where the light-hole effective mass is inverted. Optical gain in excess of 150/cm can be achieved with a pumping current density on the …

Synthesis, Molecular Structure, And Reactivity Of Dinuclear Copper(Ii) Complexes With Carboxylate-Rich Coordination Environments, Richard C. Holz, John M. Bradshaw, Brian Bennett

Physics Faculty Research and Publications

The dinucleating ligand N,N‘-(2-hydroxy-5-methyl-1,3-xylylene)bis(N-(carboxymethyl)glycine) (CH₃HXTA) has been used to synthesize the dinuclear Cu(II) bis(pyridine) complex Na[Cu₂(CH₃HXTA)(Py)₂]·1.5(1,4-dioxane) (Na(1)):  triclinic space group P1̄ (a = 12.550(3) Å, b = 13.413(3) Å, c = 13.540(4) Å, α = 117.12(2)°, β = 104.70 (2)°, and γ = 92.13(2)°). The structure shows two distinct distorted square pyramidal Cu(II) centers with each Cu(II) ion bound by two carboxylate oxygen atoms, one amine nitrogen atom, a phenolate oxygen atom, and one pyridine nitrogen atom. The Cu--Cu separation is 3.531 Å, …

Ray Theory Analysis Of The Shadow Blister Effect, James A. Lock

Physics Faculty Publications

When an extended light source such as the Sun illuminates two objects so that their shadows lie close to each other, the shadow of one of the objects occasionally appears to bulge out toward the shadow of the other. This effect is caused by the overlap of the penumbras of the shadows and is analyzed here with ray theory. A laboratory demonstration of this phenomenon is performed and compared with theoretical predictions. (C) 1998 Optical Society of America.

Amplification Of High-Order Rainbows Of A Cylinder With An Elliptical Cross Section, James A. Lock, Charles L. Adler, Bradley R. Stone, Patrick D. Zajak

Physics Faculty Publications

The intensity of high-order rainbows for normally incident light and certain rotation angles of a cylinder with an elliptical cross section is greatly amplified with respect to the intensity for a circular cross-sectional cylinder. The amplification is due to a number of the internal reflections occurring past the critical angle for total internal reflection, and the effect is especially strong for odd-order rainbows, beginning with the third order. Experimentally, the fourth-and the fifth-order rainbows of a nearly elliptical cross-sectional glass rod were observed and analyzed. (C) 1998 Optical Society of America.

Rainbow Scattering By A Cylinder With A Nearly Elliptical Cross Section, Charles L. Adler, James A. Lock, Bradley R. Stone

Physics Faculty Publications

We both theoretically and experimentally examine the behavior of the first-and the second-order rainbows produced by a normally illuminated glass rod, which has a nearly elliptical cross section, as it is rotated about its major axis. We decompose the measured rainbow angle, taken as a function of the rod's rotation angle, into a Fourier series and find that the rod's refractive index, average ellipticity, and deviation from ellipticity are encoded primarily in the m = 0, 2, 3 Fourier coefficients, respectively. We determine these parameters for our glass rod and, where possible, compare them with independent measurements. We find that …

Temperature Variations And N/O In The Orion Nebula From Hst Observations, R. H. Rubin, P. G. Martin, R. J. Dufour, Gary J. Ferland, J. A. Baldwin, J. J. Hester, D. K. Walter

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

Using the Goddard High Resolution Spectrograph (GHRS) and the Faint Object Spectrograph (FOS) on the Hubble Space Telescope, we measured the flux of the N II] (2s2p^{3 5}S₂ --> 2s²2p^{2 3}P_2,1) lines at λ_vac = 2143.45, 2139.68 Å in the Orion Nebula--the first detection of these lines in an H II region. In order to assess the N⁺/O⁺ ratio, we also measured the flux of the [O II] (2p³²P^o_1/2,3/2-->2p³⁴S^o_3/2) lines at λ_{vac …}

The Ultraviolet-Optical Albedo Of Broad Emission Line Clouds, Kirk Korista, Gary J. Ferland

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

We explore the effective UV-optical albedos of a variety of types of broad emission line clouds, as well as their possible effects on the observed spectra of active galactic nuclei (AGNs). An important albedo source in moderately ionized ionization-bounded clouds is that which is due to neutral hydrogen: Rayleigh scattering of continuum photons off the extreme damping wings of Lyα. The photons resulting from this scattering mechanism may contribute significantly to the Lyα emission line, especially in the very broad wings. In addition, line photons emitted near 1200 Å (e.g., N V λ1240) that stream toward the neutral portion of …

Computer Intensive Physics, Robert Fuller

Robert G. Fuller Publications

In the abstract packet for the conference is an article of references about ideas from cognitive studies that help us teach physics (Fuller, 1998). There is also a pamphlet of references to innovative physics teaching programs in the United States and many of those programs have world-wide web sites so you can access information about those programs from Portugal (O'Kuma, 1998).

I want to talk about my research project last year, which I now call "Computer Intensive Physics", but it really started out as paper-less physics.

Event Shape Analysis Of Deep Inelastic Scattering Events With A Large Rapidity Gap At Hera, J. Breitweg, M. Derrick, D. Krakauer, S. Magill, D. Mikunas, B. Musgrave, J. Repond, R. Stanek, R. L. Talaga, R. Yoshida, H. Zhang, Margarita C. K. Mattingly, F. Anselmo, P. Antonioli, G. Bari, M. Basile, L. Bellagamba, D. Boscherini, A. Bruni, G. Bruni, G. Cara Romeo, G. Castellini, L. Cifarelli, F. Cindolo, A. Contin, M. Corradi, S. De Pasquale, I. Gialas, P. Giusti, G. Iacobucci, G. Laurenti

Faculty Publications

A global event shape analysis of the multihadronic final states observed in neutral current deep inelastic scattering events with a large rapidity gap with respect to the proton direction is presented. The analysis is performed in the range 5 ≤ Q2 ≤ 185 GeV2 and 160 ≤ W ≤ 250 GeV, where Q2 is the virtuality of the photon and W is the virtual-photon proton centre of mass energy. Particular emphasis is placed on the dependence of the shape variables, measured in the γ * -pomeron rest frame, on the mass of the hadronic final state, MX. With increasing MX …

The Texture Of Clouds, A. R. Jameson, Alexander Kostinski, R A. Black

Department of Physics Publications

Using a precise definition of clustering, it is shown that in two tropical cumulus clouds, droplets appear to be bunched over distances ranging from at least a kilometer or more down to several centimeters. A statistical framework is proposed for quantifying clustering in terms of a Poisson probability mixture. While these observations require further substantiation in many different clouds, droplet clustering may play a role in diverse phenomena from the coalescence growth of raindrops to the scattering of radiation by clouds.

Temporal Contrast In Ti:Sapphire Lasers: Characterization And Control, Marc Nantel, Jiro Itatani, An-Chun Tien, Jerome Faure, Daniel Kaplan, Marcel Bouvier, Takashi Buma, Paul Van Rompay, John Nees, Peter P. Pronko, Donald P. Umstadter, Gerald A. Mourou

Donald Umstadter Publications

As ultrafast lasers achieve ever higher focused intensities on target, the problem of ensuring a clean laser-solid interaction becomes more pressing. In this paper, we give concrete examples of the deleterious effects of low-contrast interactions, and address the problem of subpicosecond laser intensity contrast ratio on both characterization and control fronts. We present the new technique of high-dynamic-range plasma-shuttered streak camera contrast measurement, as well as two efficient and relatively inexpensive ways of improving the contrast of short pulse lasers without sacrificing on the output energy: a double-pass Pockels cell (PC), and clean high-energy-pulse seeding of the regenerative amplifier.

Ampte/Cce‐Scatha Simultaneous Observations Of Substorm‐Associated Magnetic Fluctuations, S. Ohtani, K. Takahashi, T. Higuchi, A. T. Y. Lui, Harlan E. Spence, J. F. Fennell

Physics & Astronomy

This study examines substorm-associated magnetic field fluctuations observed by the AMPTE/CCE and SCATHA satellites in the near-Earth tail. Three tail reconfiguration events are selected, one event on August 28, 1986, and two consecutive events on August 30, 1986. The fractal analysis was applied to magnetic field measurements of each satellite. The result indicates that (1) the amplitude of the fluctuation of the north-south magnetic component is larger, though not overwhelmingly, than the amplitudes of the other two components and (2) the magnetic fluctuations do have a characteristic timescale, which is several times the proton gyroperiod. In the examined events the …

Onset Of Superconductivity In Decreasing Fields For General Domains, Andrew J. Bernoff, Peter Sternberg

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

Ginzburg–Landau theory has provided an effective method for understanding the onset of superconductivity in the presence of an external magnetic field. In this paper we examine the instability of the normal state to superconductivity with decreasing magnetic field for a closed smooth cylindrical region of arbitrary cross-section subject to a vertical magnetic field. We examine the problem asymptotically in the boundary layer limit (i.e., when the Ginzburg–Landau parameter, k, is large). We demonstrate that instability first occurs in a region exponentially localized near the point of maximum curvature on the boundary. The transition occurs at a value of the …

Regression Analysis Of Radar Measured Optical Turbulence With Synoptic Scale Meteorological Variables, Diana L. Hajek

Theses and Dissertations

A key issue to the USAF's Airborne Laser (ABL) program is the ability to accurately predict the level of optical turbulence that the ABL will encounter at its flight levels. The optical turbulence must be characterized so that the range and range variation of the ABL can be determined. Gravity wave spectra resulting from frontal or jet stream passage are presumed to cause layers of optical turbulence; however, exact relationships between optical turbulence and synoptic scale meteorological phenomena are unclear. This study assesses the statistical relationship between optical turbulence and synoptic scale variables through multiple linear regression. The optical turbulence …

Joint Wavelet Transform Correlation With Separated Target And Reference Planes, Boon Yi Soon, Mohammad A. Karim, Russell C. Hardie, Mohammad S. Alam

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

In recent years, we realize the usefulness of feature extraction for optical correlator and hereby, we investigate the capability of Laplace operator in feature extraction of multiple targets. The first-order terms and the false alarm terms in the correlation output would be removed using electronic power spectrum subtraction technique. Most importantly, the entire magneto-optic SLM is completely utilized for displaying only targets in the input scene. A new cost efficient hardware implementation is proposed and aforementioned result of the proposed system is evaluated through computer simulation.

Observational Limits For Lidar, Radar And Airglow Imager Measurements Of Gravity Wave Parameters, C. S. Gardner, Michael J. Taylor

All Physics Faculty Publications

By examining the observational limits and biases for lidar, radar, and airglow imager measurements of middle atmosphere gravity waves, we provide plausible explanations for the characteristics of the monochromatic wave parameters that have been reported during the past decade. The systematic dependencies of vertical and horizontal wavelength on wave period, reported in many lidar and some radar studies, are associated with diffusive damping. The prominent waves with the largest amplitudes, most often observed by lidars and radars, are those with vertical phase speeds near the diffusive damping limit. The narrow range of horizontal phase velocities of the waves seen by …

Full-Wave Modeling Of Small-Scale Gravity Waves Using Airborne Lidar And Observations Of The Hawaiian Airglow (Aloha-93) O(1s) Images & Coincident Na Wind/Temperature Lidar Measurements, M. P. Hickey, Michael J. Taylor, C. S. Gardner, C. R. Gibbons

All Physics Faculty Publications

Measurements were made of mesospheric gravity waves in the OI (5577 Å) nightglow observed from Maui, Hawaii, during the Airborne Lidar and Observations of Hawaiian Airglow (ALOHA-93) campaign. Clear, monochromatic gravity waves were observed on several nights. By using a full-wave model that realistically includes the major physical processes in this region, we have simulated the propagation of four waves through the mesopause region and calculated the O(1 S) nightglow response to the waves. Mean winds derived from Na wind/temperature lidar observations were employed in the computations. Wave amplitudes were calculated based on the requirement that the observed and simulated …

Optical Physics Of Microcavity Surface Emitting Lasers, Michael J. Noble

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of an in-depth theoretical analysis of the optical impact of transverse index confinement on the lasing modes of microcavity surface emitting lasers. Two different variational techniques were employed to calculate the relevant optical laser parameters: (1) modal resonance, field profile, (2) confinement factor, and (3) threshold gain. Through a semianalytic field analysis, two new confinement related effects were discovered: (1) a polarization dependent change in mirror reflectance with aperture radius, and (2) a mode dependent blueshift. Through a numerical field analysis, the physical mechanisms governing diffraction were ascertained. These are: (1) the transverse confinement of the optical …

Linear Reconstruction Of Non-Stationary Image Ensembles Incorporating Blur And Noise Models, Stephen D. Ford

Theses and Dissertations

Two new linear reconstruction techniques are developed to improve the resolution of images collected by ground-based telescopes imaging through atmospheric turbulence. The classical approach involves the application of constrained least squares (CLS) to the deconvolution from wavefront sensing (DWFS) technique. The new algorithm incorporates blur and noise models to select the appropriate regularization constant automatically. In all cases examined, the Newton-Raphson minimization converged to a solution in less than 10 iterations. The non-iterative Bayesian approach involves the development of a new vector Wiener filter which is optimal with respect to mean square error (MSE) for a non-stationary object class degraded …

Performance Of Imaging Laser Radar In Rain And Fog, Kathleen M. Campbell

Theses and Dissertations

The Air Force is currently developing imaging laser radar systems (ladar) for use on precision guided munitions and other imaging systems. Scientists at Eglin Air Force Base, in conjunction with Wright Laboratories, are testing a 1.06-um wavelength ladar system and need to understand the weather effects on the ladar images. As the laser beam propagates through the atmosphere, fog droplets and raindrops can cause image degradation, and these image degradations are manifested as either dropouts or false returns. An analysis of the dropouts and false returns helped to quantify the performance of the system in adverse weather conditions. Statistical analysis …

A Statistical Study Of The Magnetic Signatures Of Ftes Near The Dayside Magnetopause, Jeff Sanny, C. Beck, D. G. Sibeck

Physics Faculty Works

During magnetopause crossings, the AMPTE CCE satellite frequently observed flux transfer events (FTEs) characterized by fluctuations in the magnetic field strength (B) and bipolar signatures in the field component (B_N) normal to the nominal magnetopause. In this study, we survey 110 events observed from October to December 1984 and during January 1986. Nearly all events exhibited increases in B, and although the majority of events exhibited a symmetric bipolar signature in B_N, a significant number (31 of 110) had asymmetric bipolar signatures in which the trailing pulse was dominant. Most of the …

Double Photoionization Of Helium, James A.R. Samson, Wayne C. Stolte, Z. X. He, Y. Lu, J. N. Cutler, R. J. Bartlett

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Research

The cross sections for double photoionization of helium and the ratios of double to single ionization have been measured from the double-ionization threshold to 820 eV. The results are in very good agreement with several recent calculations.

Two-Dimensional Ferroelectric Films, Alexander V. Bune, Vladimir M. Fridkin, Stephen Ducharme, Lev M. Blinov, Serguei P. Palto, Alexander V. Sorokin, S. G. Yudin, A. Zlatkin

Stephen Ducharme Publications

Ultrathin crystalline films offer the possibility of exploring phase transitions in the crossover region between two and three dimensions. Second- order ferromagnetic phase transitions have been observed in monolayer magnetic films [1,2], where surface anisotropy energy stabilizes the two-dimensional ferromagnetic state at finite temperature [3]. Similarly, a number of magnetic materials have magnetic surface layers that show a second-order ferromagnetic–paramagnetic phase transition with an increased Curie temperature [4]. Ferroelectricity is in many ways analogous to ferromagnetism, and bulk-like ferroelectricity and finite-size modifications of it have been seen in nanocrystals as small as 250 Å in diameter [5], in perovskite films …

The Nomad Experiment At The Cern Sps, Nomad Collaboration, J. Altegoer, M. Anfreville, C. Angelini, P. Astier, M. Authier, D. Autiero, A. Baldisseri, M. Baldo-Ceolin, G. Ballocchi, M. Banner, S. Basa, G. Bassompierre, K. Benslama, I. Bird, B. Blumenfeld, F. Bobisut, J. Bouchez, S. Bunyatov, S. Boyd, Roberto Petti, Et. Al.

Faculty Publications

The NOMAD experiment is a short base-line search for ν_μ − ν_τ oscillations in the CERN neutrino beam. The ντ's are searched for through their charged current interactions followed by the observation of the resulting τ− through its electronic, muonic or hadronic decays. These decays are recognized using kinematical criteria necessitating the use of a light target which enables the reconstruction of individual particles produced in the neutrino interactions. This paper describes the various components of the NOMAD detector: the target and muon drift chambers, the electromagnetic and hadronic calorimeters, the preshower and transition radiation …

Changes In Metallicity And Electronic Structure Across The Surface Ferroelectric Transition Of Ultrathin Crystalline Poly(Vinylidene Fluoride-Trifluoroethylene) Copolymers, Jaewu Choi, Peter A. Dowben, Shawn Pebley, A.V. Bune, Stephen Ducharme, V.M. Fridkin, S.P. Palto, N. Petukhova

Peter Dowben Publications

The surface ferroelectric-paraelectric phase transition in crystalline copolymer films of vinylidene fluoride (70%) with trifluoroethylene (30%), at about 20 °C, is accompanied by a dramatic change in both the electronic structure and metallicity. The temperature-dependent changes in the electronic structure occur primarily in the conduction band. This P(VDF-TrFE 70:30) material is observed to resemble an n-type semiconductor, and the change in electronic structure at the surface ferroelectric transition resembles a semiconductor-to-semimetal transition.

Light Curve Changes In The Eclipsing Binary V719 Her, Edward G. Schmidt

Department of Physics and Astronomy: Faculty Publications

The General Catalogue of Variable Stars (Kholopov 1985) lists V719 Her as a probable type c RR Lyrae star with a period of 0.336 days. In the remarks, it is noted that another possibility is that V719 Her is a W UMa eclipsing binary with a period of .67 days. Schmidt (1991; 1993) obtained 15 light curve points in 1989-91 and concluded that V719 Her is indeed a W UMa star but with a period of .400995 days. Goderya, Leung and Schmidt (1996; 1997) subsequently obtained extensive photometry in 1993 which pro¬vided timings for five minima over an interval of …

In Situ Measurement Of Radiation Induced Conductivity In Oxide Insulators During Neutron Irradiation, D. P. White, L. L. Snead, S. J. Zinkle, W. S. Earthley

Physics Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.