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List of author's previously published works included / Bibliography: leaves 165-177 / v, 177 leaves : ill ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Physics and Mathematical Physics, 1994

Orientador : Jair Lucinda / Dissertaçao (mestrado) - Universidade Federal do Paraná / Resumo: Neste trabalho desenvolvemos a parte elétrica do potencial de polarização do vácuo, considerando o núcleo atômico como sendo uma distribuição esférica e homogênea de cargas. A diferença entre este potencial e o potencial de Uehling, que é o primeiro termo da expansão do potencial de polarização do vácuo para um núcleo pontual, é calculada numericamente e comparada com o potencial de Kãllén-Sabry, que é o segundo termo da mesma expansão. Verifica-se que este potencial não pode representar uma correção devido tamanho finito do núcleo. A seção de choque simetrizada que leva em conta os efeitos do potencial de polarização do vácuo é desenvolvida até chegar a uma formato que permite a obtenção de resultados numéricos. O desvio percentual desta seção de choque em relação a seção de choque Mott, a qual leva em conta apenas a interação coulombiana é calculado numericamente e o resultado reforça a conclusão de que o potencial de Kãllén-Sabry não pode representar uma correção devido ao tamanho finito do núcleo. / Abstract:In this work, we develop the eletric part of vacuum-polarization potential for a nucleus with a spherical and homogeneous distribuition of charges. The difference between this potential and the Uehling potential, which is the first term of the point-nucleus expansion of the vacuum-polarization potential, is calculated numerically and compared with the Kãllén-Sabry potential, which is the second term of same expansion. We verify what this potential does not represent a correction due to the finite size of the nucleus. The simmetrical cross section what taken into account vacuum-polarization potential effect is developed to a convenient form in order to perform the numerical calculation. The deviation, in percentage of this cross section with respect to the Mott cross section, which taken into account only Coulomb interaction, is determined numerically and the result reinforce the conclusion that the Kãllén-Sabry potential does not represent a correction due to the finite size of the nucleus.

We are concerned with the quantum inverse scattering problem. The corresponding Marchenko integral equation is solved by using the collocation method together with piece-wise polynomials, namely, Hermite splines. The scarcity of experimental data and the lack of phase information necessitate the generation of the input reflection coefficient by choosing a specific profile and then applying our method to reconstruct it. Various aspects of the single and coupled channels inverse problem and details about the numerical techniques employed are discussed. We proceed to apply our approach to synthetic seismic reflection data. The transformation of the classical one-dimensional wave equation for elastic displacement into a Schr¨odinger-like equation is presented. As an application of our method, we consider the synthetic reflection travel-time data for a layered substrate from which we recover the seismic impedance of the medium. We also apply our approach to experimental seismic reflection data collected from a deep water location in the North sea. The reflectivity sequence and the relevant seismic wavelet are extracted from the seismic reflection data by applying the statistical estimation procedure known as Markov Chain Monte Carlo method to the problem of blind deconvolution. In order to implement the Marchenko inversion method, the pure spike trains have been replaced by amplitudes having a narrow bell-shaped form to facilitate the numerical solution of the Marchenko integral equation from which the underlying seismic impedance profile of the medium is obtained. / Physics / D.Phil.(Physics)

In this thesis results of x-ray scattering and neutron scattering experiments on several strongly correlated transition metal oxides are presented. The prototypical charge ordered cuprate La1.48Nd0.4Sr0.12CuO4 was investigated using polarised neutron scattering. The results show that several proposed schemes for the magnetic order in this class of materials may be ruled out, however the data are consistent with one-dimensional stripe-like magnetic order. X-ray diffraction was used to show that the charge order is insensitive to an applied magnetic field, but might be affected by the existence of superconductivity. The magnetic excitations were also studied, and at low energies a gap in the magnetic fluctuations was observed and there is tentative evidence that this is related to magnetic anisotropy. The spin state transition in LaCoO3 was investigated using neutron inelastic scattering, and excitations reminiscent of those observed in ferromagnets above their critical temperatures were observed. The debate surrounding the nature of the excited spin state, S=1 or S=2, could not be resolved, however. The nature of the spin excitations in La0.82Sr0.18CoO3 was investigated using polarised neutrons and it was found that at low energies the excitations take the form of spin-waves. At higher energies this mode becomes heavily damped, and several possible damping mechanisms for this are discussed. Finally, the multiferroic material DyMn2O5 was studied using x-ray resonant scattering. A complex, temperature dependent, magnetic structure was found using a Dy resonance, which reflects an underlying order of the Mn ions. The measurements were in agreement with a theory of multiferroics based on acentric spin-density waves.

Hadronic collider experiments have played a major role in particle physics phenomenology over the last few decades. Data recorded at the Tevatron at Fermilab is still of interest, and its successor, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, has recently announced the discovery of a particle consistent with the Standard Model Higgs boson. Hadronic colliders look set to guide the field for the next fifteen years or more, with the discovery of more particles anticipated. The discovery and detailed study of new particles relies crucially on the availability of high-precision theoretical predictions for both the signal and background processes. This requires observables to be calculated to next-to-leading order (NLO) in perturbative quantum chromodynamics (QCD). Many hadroproduction processes of interest contain multiple particles in the final state. Until recently, this caused a bottleneck in NLO QCD calculations, due to the difficulty in calculating one-loop corrections to processes involving three or more final state particles. Spectacular developments in on-shell methods over the last six years have made these calculations feasible, allowing highly accurate predictions for final state observables at the Tevatron and LHC. A particular realisation of on-shell methods, generalised unitarity, is used to compute the NLO QCD cross-sections and distributions for two processes: the hadroproduction of W⁺ W^-jj, and the hadroproduction of W⁺ W^-jj. The NLO corrections to both processes serve to reduce the scale dependence of the results significantly, while having a moderate effect on the central scale choice cross-sections, and leaving the shapes of the kinematic distributions mostly unchanged. Additionally, the gluon fusion contribution to the next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) QCD corrections to W⁺ W^-j productions are studied. These contributions are found to be highly depen- dent on the kinematic cuts used. For cuts used in Higgs searches, the gluon fusion effect can be as large as the NLO scale uncertainty, and should not be neglected. All of the higher-order QCD corrections increase the accuracy and reliability of the theoretical predictions at hadronic colliders.

We are concerned with the quantum inverse scattering problem. The corresponding Marchenko integral equation is solved by using the collocation method together with piece-wise polynomials, namely, Hermite splines. The scarcity of experimental data and the lack of phase information necessitate the generation of the input reflection coefficient by choosing a specific profile and then applying our method to reconstruct it. Various aspects of the single and coupled channels inverse problem and details about the numerical techniques employed are discussed. We proceed to apply our approach to synthetic seismic reflection data. The transformation of the classical one-dimensional wave equation for elastic displacement into a Schr¨odinger-like equation is presented. As an application of our method, we consider the synthetic reflection travel-time data for a layered substrate from which we recover the seismic impedance of the medium. We also apply our approach to experimental seismic reflection data collected from a deep water location in the North sea. The reflectivity sequence and the relevant seismic wavelet are extracted from the seismic reflection data by applying the statistical estimation procedure known as Markov Chain Monte Carlo method to the problem of blind deconvolution. In order to implement the Marchenko inversion method, the pure spike trains have been replaced by amplitudes having a narrow bell-shaped form to facilitate the numerical solution of the Marchenko integral equation from which the underlying seismic impedance profile of the medium is obtained. / Physics / D.Phil.(Physics)

Les problèmes de diffusion de particules, à deux et à trois corps, ont une importance cruciale en physique atomique, car ils servent à décrire différents processus de collisions. Actuellement, le cas de deux corps peut être résolu avec une précision numérique désirée. Les problèmes de diffusion à trois particules chargées sont connus pour être bien plus difficiles mais une déclaration similaire peut être affirmée. L’objectif de ce travail est de contribuer, d’un point de vue analytique, à la compréhension des processus de diffusion Coulombiens à trois corps. Ceci a non seulement un intérêt fondamental, mais est également utile pour mieux maîtriser les approches numériques en cours d’élaboration au sein de la communauté de collisions atomiques. Pour atteindre cet objectif, nous proposons d’approcher la solution du problème avec des développements en séries sur des ensembles de fonctions appropriées et possédant une expression analytique. Nous avons ainsi développé un nombre d’outils mathématiques faisant intervenir des fonctions Coulombiennes, des équations différentielles de second ordre homogènes et non-homogènes, et des fonctions hypergéométriques à une et à deux variables / Two and three-body scattering problems are of crucial relevance in atomic physics as they allow to describe different atomic collision processes. Nowadays, the two-body cases can be solved with any degree of numerical accuracy. Scattering problem involving three charged particles are notoriously difficult but something similar -- though to a lesser extent -- can be stated. The aim of this work is to contribute to the understanding of three-body Coulomb scattering problems from an analytical point of view. This is not only of fundamental interest, it is also useful to better master numerical approaches that are being developed within the collision community. To achieve this aim we propose to approximate scattering solutions with expansions on sets of appropriate functions having closed form. In so doing, we develop a number of related mathematical tools involving Coulomb functions, homogeneous and non-homogeneous second order differential equations, and hypergeometric functions in one and two variables

Ce travail à la fois expérimental et numérique s'inscrit dans le cadre des études menées sur le captage des polluants sur les machines tournantes et porte plus particulièrement sur la caractérisation de la dispersion des fines particules d'usinage : i.e. ces particules sont assimilées à un traceur passif du fait de leur temps de réponse aérodynamique négligeable. L'objectif recherché à travers cette étude est de développer une méthode numérique de conception des captages des polluants sur machines d'usinage. Le premier travail a donc consisté à réaliser un dispositif expérimental recréant une situation similaire à une opération de meulage, mais dans un cadre parfaitement contrôlé. L'écoulement retenu est celui engendré par un cylindre en rotation dans une veine d'essai ventilée. Un polluant particulaire, représenté par des microbilles de verre sphériques, est généré dans la veine d'essai (en utilisant un système d'ensemencement en particules), recréant ainsi les effets aérauliques des plus grosses particules d'usinage. Un gaz traceur, représentant la fraction fine de particules, est injecté simultanément avec le jet de particules via un capillaire placé à la source. Les propriétés du jet de particules obtenu sont caractérisées par vélocimétrie par suivi de particules (PTV) afin d'obtenir des données d'entrée et de validation pour les simulations numériques. La méthode de suivi de particules, mise au point dans le cadre de cette étude reste robuste même dans les zones fortement chargées en particules (i.e. la région source du jet). Le champ de vitesse de la phase gazeuse a quant à lui été caractérisé par vélocimétrie par images de particules (PIV), au moyen d'un code développé spécifiquement (Belut 2006 [4]). La dispersion d'un gaz traceur (hexafluorure de soufre - SF6) émis simultanément avec le jet de particules est ensuite étudiée expérimentalement : la dispersion d'un tel gaz est en effet jugée représentative de celle des plus fines particules d'usinage dont le temps de réponse aérodynamique est négligeable. Enfin, une modélisation complète du banc d'essai est réalisée afin de permettre une comparaison avec les résultats expérimentaux pour ainsi progresser dans la validation des modèles utilisés pour décrire la dispersion d'un traceur gazeux représentatif des fines particules. Le logiciel commercial Fluent est employé pour les simulations numériques / This study based at the same time in experimental and numerical aspect, is part of the framework to understand deeply the capture of pollutants on rotating machines and focuses especially on the characterization of the dispersion of fine particles generated by machining operations : i.e. these particles are assimilated as a passive tracer due to their negligible aerodynamic response time. The main objective covered by this study is to develop a numerical method of close capture exhausts systems for machining devices. The first task was to achieve an experimental device re-creating a similar grinding operation in a perfectly controlled environment. The flow used is defined as the one generated by a rotating cylinder in a ventilated test rig. A pollutant of particles, represented by spherical glass beads, is produced inside the test rig (by using a seeding system of particles), recreating therefore the aerodynamic effects of largest machining particles. A tracer gas, representing the fraction of fine particles, is injected simultaneously with the jet of particles through a capillary tube placed at the source. The properties of the jet of particles obtained are characterized by particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) allowing then to obtain data input and validation of numerical simulations. This particle tracking technic, developed in this study remains as robust method even in heavily loaded particles (i.e. the source region of the jet). The velocity field of the gas phase has meanwhile been characterized by particle image velocimetry (PIV), using a code developed specifically for this assay (Belut 2006 [4]). The dispersion of a tracer gas (sulfur hexafluoride - SF6) emitted simultaneously with the jet of particles is then studied experimentally : the dispersion of such a gas is indeed considered representative of finest particles which aerodynamic response time is negligible. Finally, a complete modeling of the experimental test rig is performed to allow comparison with experimental results in order to progress in the validation of models used to describe the dispersion of a tracer gas representative of finest particles. The commercial soft ware FLUENT is used for numerical simulations

In this thesis, a joint experimental and theoretical investigation of the vector properties that describe the inelastic scattering of a diatomic radical with an atomic collision partner is presented. A particular emphasis is placed on those correlations that include the final rotational angular momentum, j', of the radical. The depolarisation of both NO(A) and OH(A) brought about through collisions with krypton has been studied, providing a measure of the j-j' correlation, where j is the initial rotational angular momentum associated with the diatom. The total depolarisation cross- sections for both collisional disorientation and disalignment have been measured using quantum beat spectroscopy, and modelled theoretically using quasi-classical trajectory (QCT) calculations. The agreement between experiment and theory for NO(A)-Kr is excellent, but is not observed for OH(A)-Kr under thermal conditions. This has been attributed to the importance of electronic quenching in OH(A)-Kr. The depolarisation cross-sections have also been determined at a higher collision energy for OH(A)-Kr where electronic quenching is less significant, and the experimental results are in better agreement with those obtained theoretically. The NO(A)-Kr depolarisation cross-sections fall with increasing rotational quantum number, N, whereas for OH(A)-Kr, they exhibit less of an N dependence. This trend is mirrored in the elastic depolarisation cross-sections, which have also been determined experimentally for OH(A)-Kr. The significantly attractive and anisotropic nature of the OH(A)-Kr potential energy surface (PES) accounts for these observations. The j-j' correlation is extended to include the initial (relative) velocity (k) in a new theoretical treatment of the k-j-j' correlation. The formalism developed is used with the results from the QCT calculations for NO(A)-Kr and OH(A)-Kr to provide further insight into the mechanism of depolarisation in the two systems. Collisions of NO(A) with krypton do not cause significant depolarisation due to their impulsive nature, and the projection of j onto the kinematic apse is conserved. In contrast, collisions of OH(A) with krypton effectively randomise the direction of j, again showing the influence of the anisotropic and attractive nature of the PES. However, the projection of j onto the kinematic apse is still conserved. The inelastic scattering of NO(X) with argon and krypton has also been investigated, using a crossed molecular beam apparatus. The initial Λ-doublet state of the NO(X) was selected using hexapole focussing, and the products of the collision detected using velocity mapped ion imaging. The state to state differential cross-sections (equivalent to the k-k' correlation, where k' is the final relative velocity) have been measured for collisions which conserve the initial spin-orbit level of the NO(X) with krypton. The same parity dependent effects were seen as have been observed previously for NO(X)-Ar. The collision induced alignment (equivalent to the k-k'-j' correlation) of NO(X) as a result of scattering with argon has also been determined experimentally. The results can be explained classically by considering the conservation of the projection of j onto the kinematic apse.