ABSTRACT WAVEFORM DESIGN FOR PULSE DOPPLER RADAR AgIRMAN, Handan M.S., Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Mete Severcan December 2005, 100 pages This study is committed to the investigation of optimum waveforms for a pulse doppler radar which uses a non linear high power amplifier in the transmitter. The optimum waveform is defined as the waveform with the lowest peak and integrated side lobe level, the narrowest main lobe in its autocorrelation and the narrowest bandwidth in its spectrum. The Pulse Compression method is used in radar systems since it is more advantageous in terms of the resolution. Among all pulse compression methods, the main focus of this study is on Phase Coding. Two types of radar waveforms assessed throughout this study are Discrete Phase Modulated Waveforms and Continuous Phase Modulated Waveforms. The continuous phase modulated waveforms are arranged under two titles: the memoryless phase modulated waveform and the waveform modulated with memory. In order to form memoryless continuous phase waveforms, initially, discrete phase codes are obtained by using Genetic Algorithm. Following this process, a new phase shaping pulse is defined and applied on the discrete phase waveforms. Among the applicable modulation with memory techniques, Continuous Phase Modulation maintains to be the most appropriate. The genetic algorithm is used to find different lengths of optimum data sequences which form the continuous phase scheme.

La tomographie ultrasonore assistée par ordinateur possède un fort potentiel en tant que moyen d'inspection des tissus mammaires pour le dépistage du cancer du sein; cette technique permet de réduire la dépendance à l'opérateur constatée avec l'échographie conventionnelle. Une antenne de transducteurs (3 MHz) à géométrie semi-circulaire conformée à l'anatomie du sein a été développée pour réaliser une imagerie de réflectivité des structures d'intérêt en employant une procédure de reconstruction tomographique. L'antenne comporte 1024 éléments répartis sur un arc de 190 degrés ayant un rayon de courbure de 100 mm. Les acquisitions sont gérées par une électronique à 32 voies parallèles indépendantes en émission/réception et par un multiplexer pour l'adressage des voies vers les éléments de l'antenne. Les circuits d'émission et de réception ont une fréquence d'échantillonnage allant jusqu'à 80 MHz avec une précision de 12 bits. Des formes d'ondes arbitraires (pseudo-chirp, codes de Golay) sont transmises afin d'améliorer le rapport signal sur bruit. L'électroacoustique a été caractérisée avec des objets académiques et un hydrophone afin de déterminer les propriétés d'émission du système d'imagerie (réponses impulsionnelles et distribution spatiale du champ) et de développer des outils de correction des données; ces résultats sont mis en regard avec le formalisme de résolution du problème inverse (algorithme de sommation des rétroprojections elliptiques filtrées en champ proche). L'évaluation du système d'imagerie est réalisées sur des objets ponctuels, des objets bidimensionnels à faible contraste d'impédance et un fantôme anthropomorphique de sein contenant des inclusions / Ultrasound computed tomography has considerable potential as a means of breast cancer detection since it reduces the operator-dependency observed in echography. A half-ring transducer array was designed based on the breast anatomy, to obtain reflectivity images of the ductolobular structures using tomographic reconstruction procedures. The 3-MHz transducer array comprises 1024 elements set, in a 190-degree circular arc with a radius of 100 mm. The front-end electronics incorporate 32 independent parallel transmit/receive channels and a 32-to-1024 multiplexer unit. The transmit and receive circuitries have a variable sampling frequency of up to 80 MHz and a 12-bit precision. Arbitrary waveforms are synthesized to improve the signal-to-noise ratio. The set-up was calibrated with academic objects and a needle hydrophone to develop the data correction tools and specify the properties of the system; results are compared with the formalism of inverse problem (elliptical back-projection summation algorithm).The backscattering field was recorded using a restricted aperture, and tomographic acquisitions were performed with a pair of 0.08 mm diameter steel threads, a low contrast 2-D breast phantom, and a breast-shaped phantom containing inclusions. The pulse compression is used and the contribution of this technique to ultrasound computed tomography is evaluated with respect to the use of a standard broadband pulse. Prospects for development of inspection methods and also adaptations of the electroacoustic set-up dedicated to the anatomical tomographic imaging are proposed relative to conducted studies during this thesis.

Beam combining techniques have become an important tool in the design of high-power high-brightness laser systems. Spectral beam combining (SBC) is an incoherent combining technique that does not require phase control of sources, allowing for a stable and robust system. Using SBC, beams from an array of lasers with each element operated at a different wavelength are combined into a single near-diffraction-limited beam with the same aperture using dispersive optical elements. SBC by means of volume Bragg gratings (VBGs) utilizes unique spectral response of VBGs: diffraction efficiency is close to unity when the Bragg condition is satisfied and is close to zero at multiple points corresponding to particular wavelength offsets from Bragg condition. High-efficiency VBGs can be recorded in UV-sensitive photo-thermo-refractive (PTR) glass. Narrow-band reflecting VBGs allow multi-channel SBC with high spectral density of channels. In this dissertation, experimental results of SBC with high spectral density of combined channels in two spectral regions of interest (1064 and 1550 nm) are reported. The behavior of narrow-band VBGs under high-power laser radiation is investigated. A laser system with kW-level output power and near-diffraction-limited divergence of spectrally-combined output beam is demonstrated. The system combines five randomly-polarized Yb-doped fiber lasers with 0.5 nm spectral separation in central wavelengths using narrow-band reflecting VBGs with absolute efficiency of combining > 90%. A novel design of a multi-channel high-power SBC system is suggested. In this approach, a common-cavity is created for all channels such that wavelengths of the sources are passively controlled by the combination of a common output coupler and intra-cavity VBGs which also act as combining elements. Laser wavelengths are automatically selected to match resonant wavelengths of respective VBGs. We report successful demonstration of a passively-controlled SBC system consisting of two amplifiers in a common cavity configuration. A compact and rugged monolithic SBC module based on multiplexed VBGs is introduced. Experimental results of a four-channel implementation of such module are discussed. Modular design of high-power laser systems is suggested with multiple modules arranged in a series. We show that with basic combining parameters achieved up to date, laser systems with 10 kW output power can be constructed using this arrangement. Further scaling to 100 kW power level is discussed.

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Die Erzeugung immer kürzerer und energiereicherer Laserimpulse ist eine der wichtigsten Aufgaben der Laserphysik, um physikalische Phänomene in bisher unerreichten elektrischen Feldstärkebereichen zugängig zu machen und Beobachtungen auf kleinster Zeitskala zu ermöglichen. Mit Hilfe der Nachkompression verstärkter, in edelgasgefüllten Hohlfasern selbstphasenmodulierter Ti:Saphir-Laserimpulse werden die momentan kürzesten Impulse des sichtbaren Spektralbereiches erzeugt, die nur noch wenige Schwingungszyklen des elektrischen Feldes umfassen. Ebenso notwendig wie ein solcher Schritt der Impulskompression ist der verlässliche Nachweis seines Ergebnisses. Allerdings wächst auch die physikalische und technische Herausforderung einer präzisen und vollständigen Messung des ultrakurzen Laserimpulses mit zunehmender Komplexität und Breite des Impulsspektrums. Die vorliegende Arbeit stellt sowohl auf dem Gebiet der Kompression von Sub-10-fs Impulsen als auch auf dem der vollständigen Charakterisierung solcher Impulse optimierte aber auch neue Verfahrenstechniken vor. In Experimenten an einem zweistufigen Hohlfaserkompressor wird die Erzeugung der momentan kürzesten, nicht adaptiv komprimierten Impulse mit einer Dauer von lediglich 3,8 fs demonstriert. Eine elegante Alternative zu bisherigen Kompressionsmethoden zeigt der Nachweis effektiver Selbstkompression von mJ-Impulsen auf unter 8 fs in einem selbstführenden Edelgasfilament auf. Zur Kontrolle erfolgreicher Impulskompression und für eine phasenempfindliche Untersuchung des Prozesses der Dispersionskompensation über spektrale Bandbreiten von bis zu einer Oktave mussten etablierte Impulsmesstechniken wie das SPIDER- (Spectral Phase Interferometry for Direct Electric-field Reconstruction) und das FROG- (Frequency-Resolved Optical Gating) Verfahren weiterentwickelt werden. So wird mit der Realisierung und vollständigen Analyse interferometrischer FROG-Messungen ein neues phasenempfindliches Impulsmessverfahren vorgestellt. / One challenge of today’s laser physics is the stable compression of more and more intense laser pulses to the shortest possible pulse duration to enable new high-field laser experiments and to investigate fast atomic or molecular dynamics. At present, the shortest laser pulses of the visible spectral region envelop only a few cycles of the electric field. The state of the art method to generate such short pulses behind a Ti:sapphire amplifier laser system is by means of successive steps of spectral broadening inside a gas-filled hollow fibre and dispersion compensation. However, a reliable pulse characterization is as important as the pulse compression. The more spectral bandwidth the pulse covers the more technically challenging is the measurement of the pulse’s electric field structure. In this work, new concepts of compression and characterization of pulses down to durations below 10 fs are demonstrated as well as further optimization of established techniques. Due to modern, chirped-mirror based dispersion compensation pulses as short as 3.8 fs were generated with a two-stage hollow fibre compressor. At present, these are the shortest pulses of the visible spectral region, compressed without adaptive means for dispersion compensation. For the first time the effect of self-compression of mJ-pulses to below 8 fs in a self-guiding noble gas filament is demonstrated experimentally and determined by numerical simulations. Advanced pulse characterization schemes were needed for a phase-sensitive investigation of dispersion compensation and pulse compression of white light pulses. An optimized design of the SPIDER (Spectral Phase Interferometry for Direct Electric-field Reconstruction) technique is demonstrated that facilitates the measurement of the pulse’s spectral phase in case of broadband structured spectra. With the implementation of an interferometric FROG (Frequency-Resolved Optical Gating) a new phase-sensitive pulse characterization method is introduced.

This thesis is concerned with various methods for the control and investigation of pulse dynamics in a Photonic Crystal Fibre (PCF) and of the radiation driven by a short pulse. In particular the focus is on pulses in the anomalous dispersion region which would form solitons in the absence of higher order effects. Several different types of radiation can be driven by such pulses if they are perturbed by higher order dispersive and non-linear effects - for example Resonant Radiation (RR) and Negative Resonant Radiation (NRR) two dispersive waves which gain energy at the expense of the pulse. The feature of NRR which is of particular importance is that it is the first observed example of a coupling between positive and negative frequencies in optics. This has only been possible due to recent advances in fields such as PCFs, lasers and analogue systems. As with many scientific discoveries, NRR was found by bringing together ideas and techniques from these different fields. Both the pulse and the driven radiation are investigated using a number of different pulse and PCF parameters. These include power, chirp, polarisation and PCF dispersion. These are used to vary the wavelengths at which the driven radiation occurs as well as its generation efficiency. Furthermore the power and chirp are used to vary where in the PCF the driven radiation is generated by controlling where the driving pulse compresses and spectrally expands. This property is used to investigate different stages in the evolution of the pulse and driven radiation as well as to optimise the generation efficiency of the driven radiation.

This thesis presents results from three strands of experimental work aimed towards establishing more reproducible, higher energy, and more accurately measured electron beams generated by a laser-driven plasma accelerator. The first experiment calibrated two types of detector frequently used to measure the bunch charge in laser wakefield accelerator experiments, namely scintillating screens and image plates. The experiments undertaken at the DAFNE beam test facility in Frascati, Italy, confirmed that the fluorescence signal from Kodak Lanex Regular screens varies linearly with the charge density for a nanosecond elec- tron bunch for charge densities in the range between ρ = 2 × 10⁻⁷ ^C/_m² to ρ = 10−5 ^C/_m². A sensitivity measurement of FUJIFILM BAS-IP MS image plates resulted in a sensitivity of SMS = (0.0487 ± 0.0028 ) PSL, which is 2.4 times higher than had been assumed prior to this work. The second strand aimed at improving the operation of the capillary discharge waveguide by re-designing the discharge circuit and the waveguide housing. The experiment showed that combining a glow discharge circuit with the pulsed discharge circuit of the capillary discharge waveguide reduced electrical noise, the timing jitter between the trigger pulse and the discharge, and the voltage required to initially break down the capillary gas for pressures below 10 mbar and above 150 mbar. The size of the housing of the capillary discharge waveguide was reduced in all three dimensions by an average of 60 %, enabling the device to be used in future staging experiments, and an open design of the housing eliminated the possibility of unwanted discharges. The new capillary design performed without flaw in the Astra-Gemini experiment and no disadvantages compared with the old housing were found. The third strand of work describes an experiment undertaken with the Astra-Gemini laser at the Central Laser Facility of the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, United Kingdom. The improved capillary discharge waveguide was used to generate GeV-scale electron beams with good reproducibility. Beams of electrons with energies above 900 MeV, and with root- mean-square divergence of 3.5 mrad, were observed for a plasma density of 2.2 × 10¹⁸ cm⁻³ and a peak input laser power of 55 TW. The variation of the maximum electron energy with the plasma density was measured and found to agree well with simple models. The energy spectra of the generated electron beams exhibited good shot-to-shot reproducibility, with the observed variations attributable to the measured shot-to-shot jitter of the laser parameters. Two methods for correcting the effect of beam pointing variations on the measured energy spectrum were tested and it was found that using a thin Lanex screen in front of the electron spectrometer was easy to implement and did not degrade the recorded energy spectrum. The first observation of temporal compression of a laser pulse within a plasma channel with simultaneous electron acceleration to energies higher than 500 MeV is also presented. This measurement suggests that the pulse compresses linearly from the back as predicted by theory.

The dissertation is dedicated to the detailed numerical modelling of generation dynamics of actively and/or passively Q-switched diode laser longitudinally pumped solid-state lasers, characterization of spatial and temporal laser properties and for the demonstration of application possibility of created minilasers. A detailed theoretical model for the description of generation dynamics using travelling wave approach is presented. In this model more parameters of active laser medium, pump sources and resonator architecture are taken into account. In this thesis the results which show the principal difference between results obtained using the laser travelling wave model and point laser model are presented. Using point laser model the problems of generated pulse timing jitter in passively Q-switched lasers are described and its lowering possibilities using different pumping methods are suggested. In this thesis new, based by the second order moment, laser beam characterisation by knife-edge method is presented. Also laser pulse compression possibilities in tetrachloride CCL4 medium are described. It is showed that using seed signal it is possible to obtain shorter (< 60 ps) and more stable optical pulses. In this thesis application possibilities of created minilasers are presented: the experimental results of the Z-scan measurements obtained using pulses with different pulse shapes for fused silica are presented; also experiments, in which, created minilasers for paper cleaning... [to full text] / Disertacija skirta diodais kaupinamų kietojo kūno lazerių su aktyviąja ir pasyviąja kokybės moduliacija generacijos dinamikos detalesnei skaitmeninei analizei, lazerio impulsų laikinių ir erdvinių parametrų charakterizavimui ir sukurtų minilazerių panaudojimo galimybių demonstracijai. Generacijos dinamikos detalesniai skaitmeniniai analizei, darbe pristatomas sukurtas bėgančiųjų bangų modelis, kuriame atsižvelgiama ne tik į daugelį procesų vykstančių lazerio aktyviajame elemente, bet ir į rezonatoriaus konfigūraciją bei kaupinimo šaltino parametrus. Pateikiami skaitinio modeliavimo rezultatai demonstruojantys šio modelio privalumus lyginant su dažniausiai naudojamu taškiniu lazerio modeliu. Naudojant taškinį lazerio modelį yra nagrinėjama generuojamų impulsų laikinio tirtėjimo problema pasyvios kokybės moduliacijos lazeriuose ir pasiūlyti mažinimo būdai naudojant skirtingus kaupinimo būdus. Darbe taip pat pateiktas naujas, antraisiais momentais pagrįstas, pluošto charakterizavimo judančiu peiliu metodas. Nagrinėjamos lazerių impulsų spūdos galimybės tetrachlorido CCL4 skystyje ir pademonstruota, kad naudojant užkrato signalą galima gauti trumpesnius (< 60 ps) ir stabilesnius optinius impulsus. Darbe pademonstruotos sukurtų minilazerių pritaikymo galimybės: aprašomas netiesinio lūžio rodiklio kvarciniame stikle matavimas Z-skenavimo metodu ir gautų duomenų apdorojimo procedūra įskaitant naudojamų impulsų erdvinę ir laikinę formą; aprašomi eksperimentai, kuriuose sukurti... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]

Disertacija skirta diodais kaupinamų kietojo kūno lazerių su aktyviąja ir pasyviąja kokybės moduliacija generacijos dinamikos detalesnei skaitmeninei analizei, lazerio impulsų laikinių ir erdvinių parametrų charakterizavimui ir sukurtų minilazerių panaudojimo galimybių demonstracijai. Generacijos dinamikos detalesniai skaitmeniniai analizei, darbe pristatomas sukurtas bėgančiųjų bangų modelis, kuriame atsižvelgiama ne tik į daugelį procesų vykstančių lazerio aktyviajame elemente, bet ir į rezonatoriaus konfigūraciją bei kaupinimo šaltino parametrus. Pateikiami skaitinio modeliavimo rezultatai demonstruojantys šio modelio privalumus lyginant su dažniausiai naudojamu taškiniu lazerio modeliu. Naudojant taškinį lazerio modelį yra nagrinėjama generuojamų impulsų laikinio tirtėjimo problema pasyvios kokybės moduliacijos lazeriuose ir pasiūlyti mažinimo būdai naudojant skirtingus kaupinimo būdus. Darbe taip pat pateiktas naujas, antraisiais momentais pagrįstas, pluošto charakterizavimo judančiu peiliu metodas. Nagrinėjamos lazerių impulsų spūdos galimybės tetrachlorido CCL4 skystyje ir pademonstruota, kad naudojant užkrato signalą galima gauti trumpesnius (< 60 ps) ir stabilesnius optinius impulsus. Darbe pademonstruotos sukurtų minilazerių pritaikymo galimybės: aprašomas netiesinio lūžio rodiklio kvarciniame stikle matavimas Z-skenavimo metodu ir gautų duomenų apdorojimo procedūra įskaitant naudojamų impulsų erdvinę ir laikinę formą; aprašomi eksperimentai, kuriuose sukurti... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The dissertation is dedicated to the detailed numerical modelling of generation dynamics of actively and/or passively Q-switched diode laser longitudinally pumped solid-state lasers, characterization of spatial and temporal laser properties and for the demonstration of application possibility of created minilasers. A detailed theoretical model for the description of generation dynamics using travelling wave approach is presented. In this model more parameters of active laser medium, pump sources and resonator architecture are taken into account. In this thesis the results which show the principal difference between results obtained using the laser travelling wave model and point laser model are presented. Using point laser model the problems of generated pulse timing jitter in passively Q-switched lasers are described and its lowering possibilities using different pumping methods are suggested. In this thesis new, based by the second order moment, laser beam characterisation by knife-edge method is presented. Also laser pulse compression possibilities in tetrachloride CCL4 medium are described. It is showed that using seed signal it is possible to obtain shorter (< 60 ps) and more stable optical pulses. In this thesis application possibilities of created minilasers are presented: the experimental results of the Z-scan measurements obtained using pulses with different pulse shapes for fused silica are presented; also experiments, in which, created minilasers for paper cleaning... [to full text]

L'échographie est un outil de diagnostic largement utilisé grâce à des vertus telles que l'acquisition / traitement de données en temps réel, la facilité d'utilisation et la sécurité pour le patient / praticien pendant l'examen. Cependant, comparée à d'autres méthodes d'imagerie telles que la tomographie à rayons X et l'imagerie par résonance magnétique, l'échographie présente l'inconvénient de fournir une qualité d'image relativement basse. Dans cette thèse, nous étudions une méthode capable d'augmenter la qualité d'image, permettant ainsi de meilleurs diagnostics échographiques. Afin d'augmenter le rapport signal / bruit des signaux reçus, nous proposons d'utiliser des signaux modulés en fréquence (chirps). Pour éviter l'effet négatif de la bande passante limitée de la sonde, nous modulons en amplitude les signaux d'excitations afin d'augmenter l'énergie du signal dans les bandes de fréquences où la sonde est moins efficace. Pour compresser l'énergie des échos, nous utilisons des filtres de Wiener afin d'obtenir un bon compromis résolution spatiale / stabilité du bruit. Nous combinons cette méthode appelée REC (Resolution Enhancement Technique) avec l’imagerie ultrarapide. Nous montrons des résultats simulés et expérimentaux (in-vitro, ex-vivo et in-vivo) prometteurs. De plus, nous adaptons REC afin de compenser l'effet d'atténuation tissulaire. Cette amélioration est validée expérimentalement sur des phantoms. Nous adaptons également REC à la propagation non linéaire des ondes ultrasonores, en proposant une technique d'inversion d'impulsions qui utilise REC pour fournir une meilleure résolution et un meilleur rapport contraste / bruit. Ensuite, nous appliquons REC à différents schémas d’acquisition tels que les ondes divergentes et la transmission multi-lignes (MLT). Nous montrons également que la qualité d’image peut être augmentée davantage en tenant compte de la réponse impulsionnelle spatiale de la sonde lorsque REC et MLT sont combinés / Ultrasound imaging is a diagnostic tool widely used thanks to such virtues as real-time data acquisition / processing, ease of use and safety for the patient / practitioner during examination. However, when compared to other imaging methods such as X-ray tomography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging, the echography has the disadvantage to provide relatively low image quality. In this thesis, we study a method that is able to increase the ultrasound image quality, thus paving the way towards improved diagnostics based on echography and novel ultrasound applications. In order to increase the echo signal to noise ratio of the received signals, we propose to use linear frequency modulated signals, also called chirps. To avoid the negative effect of the bandlimited acquisition probe, we apply a pre-enhancement step on the probe excitation signals in order to boost the signal energy in the frequency bands where the probe is less efficient. To compress the echo energy in reception, we use Wiener filters that allow obtaining a good trade-off between the spatial resolution and noise stability. We apply the previously detailed pipeline, also called REC (Resolution Enhancement Technique) on ultrafast imaging schemes. We show promising results in simulation and in-vitro, ex-vivo, in-vivo acquisitions. Furthermore, we adapt REC in such way that the frequency dependent tissue attenuation effect is compensated for. This improvement is validated in simulation and phantom experiments. We also adapt REC to the nonlinear propagation of ultrasound waves, by proposing a pulse inversion technique that uses REC to provide a better image resolution and contrast to noise ratio. Then, we demonstrate the generality of the REC method by applying it to different acquisition schemes such as diverging wave compounding and Multi Line Transmit (MLT). We also show that the image quality can be increased more by taking into account the spatial impulse response of the ultrasound probe when REC and MLT are combined