This thesis concerns technical aspects related to the design and operation of the submillimetre common-user bolometer array 2 (SCUBA-2) instrument, a new wide-field camera for submillimetre astronomy currently undergoing commissioning on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii. Offering unprecedented sensitivity and mapping capabilities, SCUBA-2 is expected to make a major impact in surveys of the sky at submillimetre wavelengths, a largely unexplored part of the electromagnetic spectrum, and provide better understanding of the formation and evolution of galaxies, stars and planets by providing large, unbiased samples of such objects. SCUBA-2 uses large arrays of bolometers, with superconducting transition edge sensors (TESs) as the temperature-sensitive element. TES devices are a relatively new technology, utilising the sharp resistance change between the normal and superconducting states to make a sensitive thermistor. Kilopixel arrays of such devices are multiplexed using superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs). This thesis derives the key detector performance parameters, and presents analysis of engineering data to confirm the detector performance on array scales. A key issue for bolometric instruments for far infrared and submillimetre astronomy is the need to operate at extremely low temperatures in the sub-kelvin and millikelvin ranges to achieve the necessary detector sensitivity. This work describes the design, testing and performance of the liquid cryogen-free millikelvin cryostat, the first such instrument to be deployed for astronomy. Subsequent chapters detail the design and testing of a magnetic shielding scheme for the instrument, an important aspect of the operation of superconducting devices. Based on experience with the construction and testing of this instrument, a number of potential improvements for future instruments are presented and discussed.

Superconductor-Insulator-Superconductor (SIS) mixers are now used regularly in sub- millimetre astronomical receivers. They have already achieved sensitivity approaching the quantum limit at frequencies below the superconducting gap of niobium (~680 GHz). Above that, the mixer performance is compromised by losses, unless materials with higher superconducting gap are employed in conjunction with the niobium tunnel junction. In this thesis, we present the development of 700 GHz niobium SIS mixers, employing a unilateral finline taper on a thin Silicon-On-Insulator (SOI) substrate. These mixers are broadband with full on-chip planar circuit integration, and require only a very simple mixer block. They were designed using rigorous 3-D electromagnetic simulator (HFSS), in conjunction with a quantum mixing software package (SuperMix), and have demonstrated good performance with the best noise temperature measured at 143 K. Our mixer devices were fed by multiple flare angle smooth-walled horns, which are easy to fabricated, yet retain the high performance of corrugated horns. The radiation patterns measured from 600–740 GHz have shown good beam circularity, low sidelobe and cross-polarization levels. In this thesis, we also present SIS mixer designs with balanced and sideband separ- ating capability. These mixers employ back-to-back finline tapers, so that the RF and local oscillator (LO) signals can be injected separately without a beam splitter. We have fabricated and tested the performance of the balanced mixers, and analysed their performance thoroughly. We have also investigated a new method of generating LO signals by beating the tones of two infrared lasers. Using the current 16-pixel 350 GHz SIS receiver, HARP-B, we have observed the ¹²CO J=3→2 emission lines from two nearby galaxies. An important result we found is that the ¹²CO J=3→2 correlates strongly with the 8 μm Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon emission.

A descoberta da supercondutividade no diboreto de magnésio (MgB2) em 2001 com temperatura crítica (Tc) de 39 K e campo magnético crítico superior (Hc2) (H?c2 (0)) _ 40 (T), causou uma busca frenética por materiais leves com estruturas cristalinas semelhantes e constituídos por elementos simples, e com potencial para substituir os já estabelecidos Nb-Ti e Nb3Sn na fabricação de fios e fitas supercondutoras. Entretanto, apesar de apresentar alta Tc os valores de Hc2, para o MgB2, decaem rapidamente quando submetidos a um campo magnético externo, principalmente devido ao fraco aprisionamento das linhas de fluxo magnético no material. Além disso, o processo de deformação plástica do conjunto que contém o pó granular, constituído pelos metais utilizados como barreira de difusão e como estabilizador térmico e elétrico, é desafiador, pois há dificuldades devido ao endurecimento dos metais por trabalho a frio e à acomodação do pó supercondutor. O objetivo deste trabalho é desenvolver um processo para a fabricação de fios multifilamentares de MgB2, dopado com carbono sob a forma de grafite e com a adição de diboretos com estrutura cristalina semelhante à do MgB2, além da otimização dos processos de deformação mecânica, dos tratamentos térmicos intermediários e a caracterização das propriedades cristalográficas, microestruturais e supercondutoras do fio. A metodologia utilizada para a produção do fio é a Powder-In-Tube (PIT) ex-situ com: moagem do pó realizado em moinho de alta energia, dopagem química com grafite, adição de diboreto de vanádio (VB2), inclusão de magnésio em excesso e uso de ácido esteárico (C18H36O2) como agente controlador do processo. A deformação mecânica foi feita por meio de forjamento rotativo (Rotary Swage - RS). Os resultados finais sugerem que a rota utilizada para o processo de fabricação do fio multifilamentar de MgB2 dopado com grafite e com introdução de VB2, deve ser alterada para utilizar MgB2 produzido em laboratório a partir do magnésio e de boro puros, com certificado de pureza, com o uso da metodologia in-situ, em glove-box com atmosfera controlada e com teor de oxigênio e de umidade monitorados. O processo descrito neste trabalho aperfeiçoa metodologias apresentadas na literatura e garante a integridade do fio durante todo o processo de fabricação. Além disto, sugere-se a utilização de um material de reforço externo, tais como: ferro, Glidcop (Cu-Al 15) ou aço ixox (SUS 316L) para que o fio tenha maior resistência mecânica à tração e menor custo. / The discovery of superconductivity in magnesium diboride (MgB2) in 2001 with critical temperatute (Tc) of 39 K and upper critical magnetic field (Hc2) (H?c 2 (0)) _ 40 (T), caused a frenetic search for lightweight materials with similar crystalline structures and constituded by simple elements, and with potential to replace the already traditional Nb-Ti and Nb3Sn in the manufacturing of superconducting wires and tapes. However, despite the MgB2 has high Tc, the Hc2 values decay rapidly when an external magnetic field is applied, mainly due to the poor pinning of the magnetic flux lines in the material. Furthermore, the plastic deformation process of the set containing the granular powder, constituded of metals used as diffusion barrier termal and electric stabilizer, is a challenge, because the hardening of the metals by cold working and the accommodation of the superconducting powder. The objective of this work is to develop a process for the manufacture of multifilamentary MgB2 wires, doped with carbon in the form of graphite and addition of diborides with crystalline structure similar to MgB2, as well as the optimization of the mechanical deformation processes, of the intermediate heat treatments and the characterization of the crystallographic, microstructural and superconducting properties of the wire. The methodology used for the production of the wire was the Powder-In-Tube (PIT) ex-situ with: milling of the powder in a high energy ball mill, chemical doping with graphite, addition of vanadium diboride (VB2), magnesium in excess and use of stearic acid (C18H36O2) as a process controlling agent. The mechanical deformation was done by means of rotary swaging. The final results suggest that the route used for the fabrication process of the graphite-doped MgB2 multifilamentary wire with introduction of VB2, should be changed to use MgB2 produced in laboratory from pure magnesium and boron, with a certificate of purity, using the in-situ methodology in a glove-box with controlled and monitored atmosphere with respect to the oxygen and humidity contents. The process described in this work improves methodologies shown in literature and guarantees the integrity of the wire during the entire fabrication process. In addition, it is suggested the use of an external reinforcing material, such as: iron, Glidcop (Cu-Al 15) or stainless steel (SUS 316L), so that the wire has a higher mechanical tensile strength and a lower cost.

Stacked commercial second generation (2G) high temperature superconducting (HTS) tapes has been demonstrated to have great field trapping ability, with superior mechanical, thermal properties and crossed-field performance to HTS bulks. HTS stacks are considered as a very promising candidate for superconducting permanent magnets, which can be used for many applications like superconducting machines and levitation devices. However, the current magnetization methods for HTS stacks are the conventional magnetization methods developed for HTS bulks decades ago, which have various limitations. On the other hand, the recent progress on HTS flux pumping technology enables HTS coils to be successfully magnetized in an effective and efficient way. In this thesis, these two concepts were combined for the first time. Flux pumping for HTS stacks was proposed and developed as a new magnetization technique. I employed two types of flux pumps, the rotating magnet flux pump and the rectifier type flux pump, to magnetize the modified HTS stacks. The design of the flux pumps, the experimental results and the analysis of the observed behaviours are presented in the thesis. This research provides a new direction in the magnetization of HTS permanent magnets, which has the potential to make HTS permanent magnets more practical with lighter, more compact and efficient magnetization setups.

The world demand for energy is estimated to increase by up to 70% from 2016 to 2040. To meet this demand in a sustainable way, the power density of electric motors and generators can be increased by using superconducting materials. In particular, trapped field superconducting magnets, where the field is generated by a circulating persistent current in the sample, can create magnetic fields an order of magnitude higher than possible using conventional ferromagnets, thus increasing the power density of motors and generators. This is of great interest where added weight comes at a premium, such as for naval propulsion motors, wind generators and motors/generators for future electric aircraft. This work investigates the suitability of stacked tape layers of second generation high temperature superconductors (HTS), such as YBa2Cu3O7-x (YBCO) for trapped field applications. The present limits for trapped field magnitude have been determined, which provide a basis for the optimization of pulsed field magnetization techniques for in-situ magnetization in motors and generators. Trapped fields were increased by optimising the magnetic pulse sequence, using thermally conductive material to reduce temperature rise during pulse and changing the duration of the magnetic field pulse. Finite element method computer modelling was used to model and predict the behaviour of the trapped field magnets made of HTS tape with good agreement to experiment for both field cooling and pulsed field magnetisation. The models rely on critical current data for the HTS tape and its dependence on magnetic field and temperature. For this reason, a critical current testing facility was developed and constructed as a part of this work capable of measuring critical current up to 900 A, magnetic field of 1.5 T and down to temperatures of ~10 K in forced and dynamically controlled helium vapour flow. Lastly, first steps into scaling up by pulse magnetising an array of HTS tape stacks were made, allowing for larger overall trapped flux values. Such an array exhibits geometry, similar to what is going to be used in a functional motor prototype being developed in our research group (Applied Superconductivity and Cryoscience Group, ASCG). The work done culminated in the highest trapped field achieved to date using both field cooling (13.4 T between two stacks) and pulsed field magnetization (2.1 T above a single stack), for this type of trapped field magnet.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 1981. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ENGINEERING. / Vita. / Includes bibliographical references. / by Joseph Vito Minervini. / Ph.D.

A computação quântica adiabática tem sua pedra angular no teorema adiabático, cuja eficiência está relacionada tradicionalmente à proporção da variação temporal do Hamiltoniano que descreve o sistema e o gap mínimo entre o estado fundamental e o primeiro excitado. Normalmente, esse gap tende a diminuir quando aumenta o número de recursos (bit quântico: qubit) de um processador quântico, exigindo dessa maneira variações lentas do Hamiltoniano para assim garantir uma dinâmica adiabática. Entre os candidatos para a sua implementação física, estão os qubits baseados em circuitos supercondutores os quais têm um grande potencial, por causa de seu alto controle e escalabilidade promissora. No entanto, quando esses qubits são implementados, eles têm uma fonte intrínseca de ruído devido a erros de fabricação, que não podem ser desprezados. Por isso, nesta tese nós estudamos como os efeitos causados pelas flutuações dos parâmetros físicos do qubit afetam o comportamento da fidelidade da computação, realizando com esse propósito a simulação da dinâmica de cadeias de spin pequenas desordenadas. A partir do análise exaustivo desse estúdio foi possível propor uma estratégia que permite aumentar a fidelidade considerando um sistema ruidoso. Por outro lado, motivados pelo interesse de obter critérios suficientes e necessários para satisfazer uma computação quântica adiabática e pelo fato que ainda não existe uma condição de adiabaticidade geral apesar de existir inúmeras propostas, nós apresentamos um novo critério que manifesta suficiência para sistemas mais gerais e finalmente apresentamos evidências de que tal condição seria um quantificador consistente. / Adiabatic quantum computation has its cornerstone in the adiabatic theorem, whose efficiency is traditionally related to the ratio of the Hamiltonian temporal variation that describes the system and the minimum gap between the ground state and the first excited state. Usually, this gap tends to decrease when the number of quantum resources (quantum bit: qubit) of a quantum processor increases, thus it requires slow variations of the Hamiltonian to ensure an adiabatic dynamic. Among the candidates for its physical implementation are the qubits superconducting circuit-based which have great potential because of their high control and promising scalability. However, when these qubits are implemented, they have an intrinsic source of noise due to manufacturing errors that can not be despised. Therefore, in this thesis we study how the effects caused by the fluctuations of the physical parameters of the qubit affect the behavior of the fidelity of the computation, accomplishing with this purpose the simulation of the dynamics of small disordered spin chains. From the exhaustive analysis of this studio, it was possible to propose a strategy that allows to increase the fidelity considering a noisy system. On the other hand, motivated by the interest of obtaining sufficient and necessary criteria to satisfy an adiabatic quantum computation and the fact that there is still no general adiabaticity condition despite there being numerous proposals, we present a new criterion that manifests sufficiency for more general systems and we finally presented evidence that such a condition would be a consistent quantifier.

A descoberta da supercondutividade no diboreto de magnésio (MgB2) em 2001 com temperatura crítica (Tc) de 39 K e campo magnético crítico superior (Hc2) (H?c2 (0)) _ 40 (T), causou uma busca frenética por materiais leves com estruturas cristalinas semelhantes e constituídos por elementos simples, e com potencial para substituir os já estabelecidos Nb-Ti e Nb3Sn na fabricação de fios e fitas supercondutoras. Entretanto, apesar de apresentar alta Tc os valores de Hc2, para o MgB2, decaem rapidamente quando submetidos a um campo magnético externo, principalmente devido ao fraco aprisionamento das linhas de fluxo magnético no material. Além disso, o processo de deformação plástica do conjunto que contém o pó granular, constituído pelos metais utilizados como barreira de difusão e como estabilizador térmico e elétrico, é desafiador, pois há dificuldades devido ao endurecimento dos metais por trabalho a frio e à acomodação do pó supercondutor. O objetivo deste trabalho é desenvolver um processo para a fabricação de fios multifilamentares de MgB2, dopado com carbono sob a forma de grafite e com a adição de diboretos com estrutura cristalina semelhante à do MgB2, além da otimização dos processos de deformação mecânica, dos tratamentos térmicos intermediários e a caracterização das propriedades cristalográficas, microestruturais e supercondutoras do fio. A metodologia utilizada para a produção do fio é a Powder-In-Tube (PIT) ex-situ com: moagem do pó realizado em moinho de alta energia, dopagem química com grafite, adição de diboreto de vanádio (VB2), inclusão de magnésio em excesso e uso de ácido esteárico (C18H36O2) como agente controlador do processo. A deformação mecânica foi feita por meio de forjamento rotativo (Rotary Swage - RS). Os resultados finais sugerem que a rota utilizada para o processo de fabricação do fio multifilamentar de MgB2 dopado com grafite e com introdução de VB2, deve ser alterada para utilizar MgB2 produzido em laboratório a partir do magnésio e de boro puros, com certificado de pureza, com o uso da metodologia in-situ, em glove-box com atmosfera controlada e com teor de oxigênio e de umidade monitorados. O processo descrito neste trabalho aperfeiçoa metodologias apresentadas na literatura e garante a integridade do fio durante todo o processo de fabricação. Além disto, sugere-se a utilização de um material de reforço externo, tais como: ferro, Glidcop (Cu-Al 15) ou aço ixox (SUS 316L) para que o fio tenha maior resistência mecânica à tração e menor custo. / The discovery of superconductivity in magnesium diboride (MgB2) in 2001 with critical temperatute (Tc) of 39 K and upper critical magnetic field (Hc2) (H?c 2 (0)) _ 40 (T), caused a frenetic search for lightweight materials with similar crystalline structures and constituded by simple elements, and with potential to replace the already traditional Nb-Ti and Nb3Sn in the manufacturing of superconducting wires and tapes. However, despite the MgB2 has high Tc, the Hc2 values decay rapidly when an external magnetic field is applied, mainly due to the poor pinning of the magnetic flux lines in the material. Furthermore, the plastic deformation process of the set containing the granular powder, constituded of metals used as diffusion barrier termal and electric stabilizer, is a challenge, because the hardening of the metals by cold working and the accommodation of the superconducting powder. The objective of this work is to develop a process for the manufacture of multifilamentary MgB2 wires, doped with carbon in the form of graphite and addition of diborides with crystalline structure similar to MgB2, as well as the optimization of the mechanical deformation processes, of the intermediate heat treatments and the characterization of the crystallographic, microstructural and superconducting properties of the wire. The methodology used for the production of the wire was the Powder-In-Tube (PIT) ex-situ with: milling of the powder in a high energy ball mill, chemical doping with graphite, addition of vanadium diboride (VB2), magnesium in excess and use of stearic acid (C18H36O2) as a process controlling agent. The mechanical deformation was done by means of rotary swaging. The final results suggest that the route used for the fabrication process of the graphite-doped MgB2 multifilamentary wire with introduction of VB2, should be changed to use MgB2 produced in laboratory from pure magnesium and boron, with a certificate of purity, using the in-situ methodology in a glove-box with controlled and monitored atmosphere with respect to the oxygen and humidity contents. The process described in this work improves methodologies shown in literature and guarantees the integrity of the wire during the entire fabrication process. In addition, it is suggested the use of an external reinforcing material, such as: iron, Glidcop (Cu-Al 15) or stainless steel (SUS 316L), so that the wire has a higher mechanical tensile strength and a lower cost.

ii ABSTRACT Percolation phenomena involving the electrical conductivity, dielectric constant, Hall coefficient, magnetoconductivity, relative magnetoresistivity, 1/ f noise and thermoelectric power are investigated in graphite (G) and hexagonal boron-nitride (BN) powder mixtures. Two kinds of systems are used in the experiments: highly compressed discs and parallelepipeds, cut from these discs, as well as 50%G-50%BN and 55%G-45%BN powder mixtures undergoing compression. The measured DC conductivities follow the power-laws 0"( <p, 0) ex: (<p-<Pc)t (<p > <Pc) and O"(<p, 0) ex: (<Pc-<Pti (<p < <Pc), and the low frequency (lOOHz & 1000Hz) dielectric constant varies as c( <p, W ~ 0) ex: (<Pc - <P )-S( <P < <Pc), where <Pc is the percolation threshold, t and s are the conductivity exponents, and s is the dielectric exponent. Near the percolation threshold and at high frequencies, the AC conductivity varies with frequency as 0"( <p, w) ex: WX and the AC dielectric constant varies as c( <p, w) ex: w-Y, where the exponents x and y satisfy the scaling relation x + y = 1. The crossover frequency We scales with DC conductivity as Wc ex: O"q( <p, 0) (<p > <Pc), while on the insulating side, Wc ~ 1, resulting in q ~O for the three G-BN systems. The loss tangent tan t5( <p, w) (<p < <Pc) is found to have a global minimum, in contrary to the results of computer simulations. The Hall constant could not be measured using existing instrumentation. The measured magnetoconductivity and relative magnetoresistivity follow the power-laws - 6. 0" ex: (<p - <Pc)3.08 and 6.R/ R ex: (<p - <Pc)O.28 respectively. These two exponents, iii 3.08 and 0.28, are not in agreement with theory. The 1/ f noise was measured for the conducting discs and parallelepipeds. The normalized 1/ f noise power varies as Sv I V2 ex RW with the exponents w = 1.47 and 1.72 for the disc and parallelepiped samples respectively. Furthermore, the normalized noise power near the percolation threshold is, for the first time, observed to vary inversely with the square-root of sample volume. Based on the Milgrom-Shtrikman-Bergman-Levy (MSBL) formula, thermoelectric power of a binary composite is shown to be a linear function of the WiedemanFranz ratio. A scaling scheme for the Wiedeman-Franz ratio for percolation systems is proposed, which yields power-law behavior for the thermoelectric power. The proposed power-laws for the thermoelectric power can be written as (Sm - Md ex (<p - <Pc)h 1 for <P > <Pc and as (Sm - /~1d ex (<Pc - <p)-h2 for <p < <Pc, where Sm is the thermoelectric power for the composites, Afl is a constant for a given percolation system, and hI and h2 are the two critical exponents. The experimental thermoelectric power data for the G-BN conducting parallelepipeds was fitted to the above powerlaw for <p > <Pc. A least squares fit yielded the exponent hI = -1.13 and parameter MI =9.511l V I I< respectively.

abstract: Seeking an upper limit of the Neutron Electric Dipole Moment (nEDM) is a test of charge-parity (CP) violation beyond the Standard Model. The present experimentally tested nEDM upper limit is 3x10^(26) e cm. An experiment to be performed at the Oak Ridge National Lab Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) facility seeks to reach the 3x10^(28) e cm limit. The experiment is designed to probe for a dependence of the neutron's Larmor precession frequency on an applied electric eld. The experiment will use polarized helium-3 (3He) as a comagnetometer, polarization analyzer, and detector. Systematic influences on the nEDM measurement investigated in this thesis include (a) room temperature measurements on polarized 3He in a measurement cell made from the same materials as the nEDM experiment, (b) research and development of the Superconducting QUantum Interference Devices (SQUID) which will be used in the nEDM experiment, (c) design contributions for an experiment with nearly all the same conditions as will be present in the nEDM experiment, and (d) scintillation studies in superfluid helium II generated from alpha particles which are fundamentally similar to the nEDM scintillation process. The result of this work are steps toward achievement of a new upper limit for the nEDM experiment at the SNS facility. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Physics 2019