Typescript. / Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1987. / Bibliography: leaves 132-137. / Photocopy. / xi, 137 leaves, bound ill. 29 cm

The restrictions of micro-scale systems are approaching rapidly. In anticipation of this development, nano-scale electronics has become the focus of many researchers and engineers in academia and industry since early 1990s. The basic building blocks of modern integrated circuits have been diodes and transistors with their current-voltage I-V characteristics being of prime significance for the design of complex signal processing and shaping devices and systems. Classical and semi-classical physical principles are no longer powerful enough or even valid to describe the phenomena involved. The application of rich and powerful concepts in quantum theory has become indispensable. These facts have been influential in undertaking this research project. This research is built upon the determination of the Eigenpairs of one and two dimensional positive differential operators with periodic boundary conditions. The Schrödinger equation was solved for positive operators in both one and two dimensions. Fourier series were used to express the derivatives as the summation of Fourier terms. This led to a novel approach for the calculation of the eigenmodels of a perturbed potential well. The perturbation can be done via an electric field applied to the potential well. The research in this thesis includes a thorough understanding of quantum mechanics fundamentals, mastering of different approximation techniques such as the variational technique and results that have been generated and published using the novel techniques.

Results from large-scale assessments of academic achievement are key sources of evidence in the development of education policy and reform. The increasing influence of these assessments underscores the need for the results to be valid and reliable. This study investigates possible threats to the validity of reading proficiency assessments by examining the influence of two motivational variables: the interest attributed to the texts students read, and the amount of effort that students invest in undertaking the reading assessment. Using data from Australian pilot assessments and the Programme for International Student Achievement (PISA) this study explores the influence of interest and effort on reading proficiency outcomes and on the conclusions that can be drawn from these assessments.

This study of local public sector efficiency, the first attempted in an Australian context using frontier measurement techniques, seeks to survey and estimate the level and determinants of productive, allocative, technical and scale efficiency in Australian local government. It finds that a major influence on efficiency in local government is the imposed contextual environment, that efficiency varies markedly across particular local governments, and that productive efficiency in the provision of local public services has improved during the recent program of microeconomic reform. The first theoretical section of the study examines the econometric and mathematical methods that have been employed in the recent history of efficiency measurement. Starting with an assessment of the significance of Farrell's (1957) pioneering work on the analysis of productive efficiency, it extends this approach to the orthodox analysis of deterministic frontiers, and discusses the ongoing analysis of stochastic frontiers. The theoretical section also examines the alternative mathematical programming approach to the analysis of productive efficiency, as well as examining some extensions to this approach. The section concludes with a discussion of various theoretical issues involved in selecting an appropriate analytical technique and interpreting the resultant findings. The second section of the study contains a comprehensive survey of empirical work on frontier efficiency measurement techniques. It examines various applications using microeconomic efficiency methods in the fields of financial services, healthcare, education, local public services, and other selected applications. Attention is paid to the preferred analytical techniques used in each field, especially those concerning input/output specification. The main finding of this section is that the nature of the sample itself often requires careful analysis, especially as institutional and environmental factors can exert a strong influence on efficiency measures. The third section of the study provides a brief overview of local government in Australia, with particular emphasis on internationally distinguishable characteristics. The function and financing of Australian local government is discussed, with special attention paid to the state of New South Wales. The institutional section also examines the progress of microeconomic reform in Australian local government, and discusses the extant approaches to comparative performance measurement and process benchmarking. The final section of the study is concerned with a contemporary empirical evaluation of local public sector efficiency in Australia. The analysis is not only the first undertaken in Australia using frontier measurement techniques, but this is also the only study to simultaneously evaluate efficiency in a number of different local government functions, across both jurisdictions and time. The results indicate that allocative inefficiency, rather than technical inefficiency, represents the main source of productive inefficiency in local government, and that technical inefficiency is largely the result of scale inefficiencies.

Thesis (M.S.)--Ohio University, August, 2000. / Title from PDF t.p.

Thesis(M.S.)--Auburn University, 2005. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographic references.

Zugl.: Karlsruhe, Universiẗat, Diss., 2007.

Thesis (M.S.E.E.)--State University of New York at Binghamton, Watson School of Engineering and Applied Science, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1992. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 44-48). Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (D. Psych.)--Victoria University (Melbourne, Vic.), 2007.