[Truncated abstract] The research described in this thesis investigated optical spring interactions and instabilities in a macroscopic opto-mechanical resonator. The thesis describes an experiment designed to model an optical spring `tranquiliser’ cavity which has been proposed to suppress the predicted parametric instabilities in the next generation of interferometric gravitational wave detectors. In a series of experiments, the optical spring effect was observed in macroscopic optical cavities through measured changes in mechanical stiffness, and measured changes in mechanical loss. The optical spring effect was further characterised through investigation of its dependent parameters. Two pairs of identical, low optical loss mirrors were bonded to a mechanical structure using a novel low mechanical loss technique, forming an opto-mechanical composite resonator. The technique uses the naturally occurring resin Yacca gum as a bonding agent. This resulted in the formation of two optical cavities with a length of l = 0.100±0.001m, only one of which was used in experiments. Using finite element modelling, the resonator?s two lowest modes, with frequencies of fm1 = 722.8Hz and fm2 = 747.9Hz, and an effective mass 0.0323±0.0001kg, were found to be subject to the optical spring effect. ... The instabilities are expected to have a parametric gain factor of up to 100 in the frequency range of 15-120kHz. Therefore, if optical spring damping can be made large enough to reduce the Q-factor of the Advanced LIGO test-masses by a factor of 100, all parametric instabilities should be eliminated. For a simple servo loop and an optical cavity with the practically achievable finesse of F = 30,000, a tranquiliser cavity length of 1.3cm was found to produce optimum enhanced damping. This configuration only requires 1.47W of input power, resulting in an intra-cavity power of 5.72kW. The cavity mirrors were assumed to have optical coatings with a damage threshold of 1MW/cm2, which limited the spot size to a minimum area of 0.572mm2, or a radial beam waist of w = 0.427mm. This nearly flat-flat cavity has a stability g-factor of 0.9997. Even given these technical challenges, suppression of the parametric instabilities predicted to occur in the next generation of interferometric detectors is possible to achieve practically using enhanced optical spring damping. A possible design for such a tranquiliser cavity is also suggested.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 100-105) Also available in print.

Thesis (Ph.D.) - University of Queensland, 2003. / Includes bibliography.

Ένα πράγμα που θέτει τους στατιστικολόγους πέρα από άλλους επιστήμονες είναι σχετική άγνοια του κοινού γενικά σχετικά με το τι είναι στην πραγματικότητα το πεδίο της στατιστικής. Ο κόσμος έχει μια μικρή γενική ιδέα του τι είναι η χημεία ή η βιολογία — αλλά τι είναι αυτό ακριβώς που κάνουν οι στατιστικολόγοι; Μία απάντηση στο ερώτημα αυτό έχει ως εξής: στατιστική είναι η επιστήμη που ασχολείται με τη συλλογή, περιληπτική παρουσίαση της πληροφορίας, παρουσίαση και ερμηνεία των δεδομένων. Τα δεδομένα είναι το κλειδί, φυσικά — τα πράγματα από τα οποία εμείς αποκτούμε γνώσεις και βγάζουμε αποφάσεις. Ένας πίνακας δεδομένων παρουσιάζει μια συλλογή έγκυρων δεδομένων, αλλά είναι σαφές ότι είναι εντελώς ανεπαρκής για την σύνοψη ή την ερμηνεία τους.Το πρόβλημα είναι ότι δεν έγιναν παραδοχές σχετικά με τη διαδικασία που δημιούργησε αυτά τα δεδομένα (πιο απλά, η ανάλυση είναι καθαρά μη παραμετρική, υπό την έννοια ότι δεν επιβάλλεται καμία τυπική δομή για τα δεδομένα). Επομένως, καμία πραγματική περίληψη ή σύνοψη δεν είναι δυνατή. Η κλασική προσέγγιση σε αυτή τη δυσκολία είναι να υποθέσουμε ένα παραμετρικό μοντέλο για την υποκείμενη διαδικασία, καθορίζοντας μια συγκεκριμένη φόρμα για την υποκείμενη πυκνότητα. Στη συνέχεια, μπορούν να υπολογιστούν διάφορα στατιστικά στοιχεία και μπορούν να παρουσιαστούν μέσω μιας προσαρμοσμένης πυκνότητας.Δυστυχώς, η ισχύς της παραμετρικής μοντελοποίησης είναι επίσης η αδυναμία της. Συνδέοντας ένα συγκεκριμένο μοντέλο, μπορούμε να έχουμε μεγάλα οφέλη, αλλά μόνο εάν το πρότυπο θεωρείται ότι ισχύει (τουλάχιστον κατά προσέγγιση). Εάν το υποτιθέμενο μοντέλο δεν είναι σωστό, οι αποφάσεις που θα αντλήσουμε από αυτό μπορεί να είναι χειρότερες από άχρηστες, οδηγώντας μας σε παραπλανητικές ερμηνείες των δεδομένων. / A thing that places the statisticians beyond other scientists is relative ignorance of public as generally speaking with regard to what it is in reality the field of statistics. The world does have a small general idea what is chemistry or biology - but what is precisely that statisticians do? An answer in this question has as follows: statistics is the science that deals with the collection, general presentation of information, presentation and interpretation of data. The data are the key, from which we acquire knowledge and make decisions. A table of data presents a collection of valid data, but it is obvious that it is completely insufficient for their synopsis or their interpretation. The problem is that no assumptions have been made about the process that created these data (more simply, the analysis is no parametric, under the significance that is no formal structure is imposed on the data). Consequently, no real summary or synopsis is possible. The classical approach in this difficulty is to assume a parametric model for the underlying process, determining a concrete form for the underlying density. Afterwards, can be calculated various statistical elements and a fitted density can manifest itself. The power of parametric modelling is also its weakness. By linking inference to a specific model, we can have big profits, but only if the model is true. If the assumed model is not correct, the decisions that we will draw from this can be worse than useless, leading us to misleading interpretations of data.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T12:48:42Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 / Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T13:58:03Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 09246.pdf: 5265828 bytes, checksum: 4d1524b4005b3c1696584a11c7c97252 (MD5) / Dissertacao (Mestrado) / IPEN/D / Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares - IPEN/CNEN-SP

This thesis describes an experimental investigation of optical frequency conversion in isotropic semiconductor waveguides by use of several phase-matching approaches. Efficient, type I second harmonic generation of femtosecond pulses is reported in birefringently-phase-matched GaAs/Alox waveguides pumped at 2.01 μm. Practical second harmonic average powers of up to ~ 650 μW are obtained, for an average launched pump power of ~ 5 mW. This corresponds to a waveguide conversion efficiency of ~ 20 % and a normalized conversion efficiency of greater than 1000 % W−1cm−2. Pump depletion of more than 80 % is recorded. Second harmonic generation by type I, third order quasi-phase-matching in a GaAs- AlAs superlattice waveguide is reported for fundamental wavelengths from ~1480 to 1520 nm. Quasi-phase-matching is achieved through modulation of the nonlinear coefficient χ[sub](zxy)(2), which is realised by periodically tuning the superlattice bandgap. An average output power of ~25 nW is obtained for a launched pump power of < 2.3 mW. Type I second harmonic generation by use of first order quasi-phase-matching in a GaAs/AlAs symmetric superlattice waveguide is also reported, with femtosecond fundamental pulses at 1.55 μm. A periodic spatial modulation of the bulk-like second- order susceptibility χ[sub](zxy)(2) is realized using quantum well intermixing by As+ ion implantation. A practical second harmonic average power of ~1.5 μW is detected, for a coupled pump power of ~11 mW. Second harmonic generation through modal-phase-matching in GaAs/AlGaAs semiconductor waveguides is reported. Using femtosecond pulses, both type I and type II second harmonic conversion is demonstrated for fundamental wavelengths near 1.55 μm. An average second harmonic power of ~10.3 μW is collected at the waveguide output for a coupled pump power of < 20 mW. For a complete characterisation, the optical loss is measured in these nonlinear GaAs- based waveguides over the spectral range 1.3-2.1 μm in the infrared, by deploying a femtosecond scattering technique. Typical losses of ~5-10 dB/cm are measured for the best of the waveguides, while a systematic intensity and wavelength dependent study revealed the contribution of Rayleigh scattering and two photon absorption in the overall transmission loss.

Um tópico importante em modelagem geométrica é a definição de objetos que não contenham cantos ou farpas. A geração de superfícies de junção (superfícies que conectam suavemente superfícies distintas) e uma das técnicas utilizadas para solucionar esse tipo de problema. Pode-se abordar a geração de superfícies de junção sob vários aspectos. Neste trabalho, serão estudadas superfícies de junção que conectam suavemente duas outras superfícies distintas (superfícies-base). Sob este enfoque, a geração das superfícies de junção será dividida em três etapas a saber: modelagem das superfícies-base, determinação das curvas de ancoragem e geração das junções propriamente ditas. Curvas de ancoragem são curvas que determinam a forma do contato entre a junção e cada uma das superfícies base. As superfícies-base utilizadas são superfícies compostas modeladas utilizando-se "beta-splines" uniformes. Discussões sobre a melhor maneira de se modelar as mesmas foram consideradas fora do contexto deste trabalho. A determinação das curvas de ancoragem é amplamente discutida. Optou-se por utilizar um piano de corte contra cada uma das superfícies-base para a determinação das curvas de ancoragem. O cálculo da intersecção entre o plano de corte e cada um dos "patches" das superfícies-base e feito utilizando-se um método numérico hibrido baseado em um algoritmo de movimentação associado a um algoritmo de reticulado. A geração das superfícies de junção e feita utilizando-se a técnica de Hermite. Para tanto é preciso que se calculem os vetores de controle necessários a técnica de Hermite de forma que se garanta a continuidade desejada ao longo da curva de contato entre a superfície base e a junção. No caso em questão e garantida continuidade geométrica de primeira ordem (G1). Por fim, apresenta-se protótipo do modelador utilizado para validar o método proposto. São indicadosos resultados obtidos bem como uma analise comparativa com outras soluções semelhantes encontradas na literatura a disposição. Os testes com o prot6tipo foram feitos em um microcomputador com arquitetura compatível com IBM-PC 386 com 640 KBytes de RAM, 20 Mhz, adaptador gráfico VGA e co-processador matemático 80387. O protótipo pode, entretanto, ser utilizado em qualquer microcomputador compatível com IBM-PC que disponha de no mínimo 640 Kbytes de memória RAM. O uso de co-processador matemático e adaptador gráfico EGA ou de major capacidade é aconselhado. / An important topic in geometric modeling is the definition of objects without sharp, corners or edges. A blending surface is one that smoothly connects two given surfaces.It has been a very useful way to define objects without sharp, corners or edges. One can approach the generation of blending surfaces from different points of view. This work deals with blending surfaces that smoothly connect two other surfaces called base-surfaces. According to this point of view the generation of blending surfaces will be divided in 3 steps: base-surfaces modeling, rail curves determination and generation of the blending surfaces. A rail curve is one along which blending and base surfaces meet. The base-surfaces used are composed-surfaces modeled by uniform beta-splines. The problem of modeling these surfaces is beyond the scope of this work. The determination of rail-curves is widely discussed. In order to determine each one of the rail curves, an intersection plane is choosen. The computation of the intersection between the intersection plane and each one of the patches of the base-surfaces uses an hibrid numeric algoritm based on a marching method associated with an lattice evaluation algorithm. The generation of blending surfaces is done using the Hermite technique. To make this possible one has to compute the control vectors needed to generate an Hermite surface and, at the same time, guarantee the desirable continuity along the rail-curves. In this work geometric continuty (G 1) is guaranteed. Finally it is presented the prototype of the modeler used to validate the proposed method. The results obtained are presented as well as a comparative analysis with other solutions found in the literature.

Este documento trata da especificação de uma arquitetura aberta para controle de robôs manipuladores. A arquitetura é implementada utilizando o framework do projeto OROCOS, ambiente que já foi utilizado com sucesso em alguns sistemas de controle de robôs. Esta arquitetura é especificada para um robô manipulador genérico de N juntas, definindo componentes que abstraem o hardware dos robôs. A arquitetura é implementada com três tipos de controladores diferentes: PID independente por junta, controlador de torque calculado e controlador com feedforward. A sua validação é feita através da sua implementação em um robô real. Para isso é utilizada uma placa de acionamento, utilizando o barramento CAN devido ao seu determinismo e a sua taxa de comunicação. Também é necessário a utilização do modelo dinâmico do robô para as estratégias de controle de torque calculado e com feedforward. A obtenção de tal modelo é feita neste trabalho de forma analítica, e a seguir os parâmetros são identificados usando o sistema proposto. / This work deals with the specification of an open architecture for control of manipulator robots. The architecture is implemented by using the OROCOS framework. The architecture is specified for a generic manipulator robot with N joints, through definition of components which abstract the hardware of the robot. Three different controllers are implemented: an independent PID for each joint, a computed torque controller and a controller with feedforward. The validation is made through the implementation on the Janus robot. For this purpose, an actuator card is defined. This card uses the CAN bus due its determinism and bus rate. The dynamic model of Janus, used in computed torque and feedforward controllers, is obtained in an analytical way. After that, the parameters of this model are identified using the least squares method.

Este trabalho tem por objetivo desenvolver um método de controle de distorção adequado ao design de superfície de produto industrial, com forma tridimensional não planificável, produzido em larga escala, de modo a minimizar as distorções gráficas procedentes da aplicação de uma imagem bidimensional em um objeto tridimensional com superfície não planificável, considerando, principalmente, a complexidade da geometria do objeto. Essa pesquisa justifica-se quando se verifica o aumento de produtos com formas não planificáveis no mercado e a visível dificuldade dos profissionais em resolver problemas de distorções das imagens quando o objeto tem uma geometria complexa. Além disso, o estudo visa contribuir também com a redução de custos de desenvolvimento desse tipo de produto, já que estuda um método que possibilita a verificação digital, eliminando os custos físicos de tentativa e erro. O método utiliza recursos de representação paramétrica de superfícies, que viabilizam a manipulação de objetos tridimensionais complexos no meio computacional e que são definidos por equações que relacionam um domínio paramétrico plano e o espaço tridimensional. Para cada uma das dimensões (x, y e z) do espaço tridimensional, existe uma equação que faz a relação com o espaço paramétrico bidimensional de coordenadas u e v. Dentre esses recursos, os mais utilizados são: mapeamento de textura e render to texture. A indústria de desenhos animados e games tridimensionais costuma utilizar com frequência estes recursos computacionais para melhorar o realismo de suas imagens. Nesta pesquisa, estudase a possibilidade de direcionar essas ferramentas computacionais para a indústria de produtos físicos manufaturados produzidos em série. A pesquisa propõe-se estudar três casos de produtos com superfícies não planificáveis de materiais distintos e processos de produção diferentes entre si. A partir dos três estudos de casos é proposto o método que visa permitir a solução sistematizada dessa classe de problema relacionado às distorções. A verificação do método é realizada, com resultados significativos, em conjunto com três grandes empresas nacionais localizadas da região sul do Brasil. O primeiro estudo de caso consiste em uma tigela de cerâmica da empresa Oxford®; o segundo, uma chaleira de metal da empresa Tramontina®, e o terceiro, uma sandália de polímero da empresa Grendene®. Assim, por meio desta pesquisa, espera-se ampliar a área do conhecimento que circunscreve o design de superfície, ampliando os meios que facilitem a atividade projetual e apontando para a necessidade de instrumentos tecnológicos que venham facilitar os projetos de superfícies de objetos com formas não planificáveis. / This work aims to develop a distortion control method adequate for surface design of mass-produced industrial products with non-planable tridimensional shape, so as to minimize the graphic distortions resulting from the application of a bidimensional image onto a tridimensional object with non-planable surface, taking into consideration mainly the complexity of the object’s geometry. The justification for this research lies in the increase of products with nonplanable shapes available on the market and in the clear difficulty of professionals to solve image distortion problems when the object presents complex geometry. Besides, this research aims to contribute to the reduction of costs of developing this kind of product, seeing that it studies a method that enables digital verification so eliminating the physical costs of trial and error. The method uses resources of parametric representation of surfaces, which enable the manipulation of complex 3D objects in the computational environment, and which are defined by equations that relate one plane parametric domain and the tridimensional space. For each dimension (x, y e z) of the tridimensional space there is an equation that makes the relation with the bidimensional parametric space with coordinates u and v. The most frequently used computational resources are texture mapping and render to texture, which are often used by the industry of 3-D animation to improve the realism of their images. In this work we study the possibility to apply these computational tools in the industry of manufactured products. This research contemplates three case studies of products with non-planable surfaces of different materials and different manufacturing processes. We then propose a method that allows a systematized solution for distortion-related problems. The verification of the method, which showed meaningful results, was carried out together with three large national enterprises located in the southern region of Brazil. The first case study consists in a ceramic bowl by Oxford®; the second, a metal kettle by Tramontina®; and the third, a polymer sandal by Grendene®. With this research we expect to expand the field of knowledge in which surface design is inserted thus extending the resources for the projectual activity and pointing to the need for technological tools that may help with the projects of surfaces of objects with non-planable shape.

This is a study of the way in which digital audio and a number of key associated technologies that rely on it as a framework have changed the creation, production and dissemination of music, as witnessed by my own creative practice. The study is built on my own work as an electronic musician and composer and draws from numerous collaborations with not only other musicians but also researchers and artists, as documented through commissions, performances, academic papers and commercial releases over an 9 year period from 2007 to 2016. I begin by contextualising my own musical practice and outlining some prominent themes associated with the democratisation of computing that the work of this thesis interrogates as a critical framework for the production of musical works. I go on to assess how works using various techniques afforded by digital audio may be interpreted as progressively instantiating a digital ontology of music. In the context of this digital ontology of music I propose a method of analysis and criticism of works explicitly concerned with audio analysis and algorithmic processes based on my interpretation of the concept of `hypertext', wherein the ability for computers to analyse, index and create multi-dimensional, non-linear links between segments of digital audio is best described as hypertextual. In light of this, I contextualise the merits of this reading of music created using these affordances of digital audio through a reading of several key works of 20th century music from a hypertextual perspective, emphasising the role information theory and semiotics have to play in analyses of these works. I proffer this as the beginnings of a useful model for musical composition in the domain of digital audio which I seek to explore through my own practice. I then describe and analyse, both individually and in parallel numerous works I have undertaken that seek to interrogate the intricacies of what it means to work in the domain of digital audio with audio analysis, machine listening, algorithmic and generative computational processes and consider the ways in which aspects of this work might be seen as contributing useful and novel insights into music creation by harnessing properties intrinsic to digital audio as a medium. Finally, I emphasise, based on the music and research presented in the thesis, the extent to which digital audio and the harnessing of increasingly complex computational systems for the production and dissemination of music has changed the ontology of music production, a situation which I interpret as creating both substantial challenges, but also great possibilities for the future of music.