Thesis (S.M.)--Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering; and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 88-91). / The work presented in this thesis addresses the problem of the detection, classification and localization of seabed objects in shallow water environments using a time reversal approach in a bistatic configuration. The waveguide is insonified at low frequency ('kHz) with an omnidirectional source and the resulting scattered field is sampled by a receiving array towed behind an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV). The recorded signals are then processed to simulate onboard the AUV, the time reversed transmissions which serve to localize the origin of the scattered field on the seabed and estimate the position of the targets present. The clutter rejection based upon the analysis of the singular values of the Time Reversal operator is investigated with simulated data and field measurements collected off the coast of Palmaria (Italy) in January 2008. / by Alexis J. Dumortier. / S.M.

Quando ocorrem solicitações dinâmicas nos solos, torna-se indispensável a determinação do módulo de cisalhamento máximo (Go) para elaboração de projetos de Engenharia Geotécnica. Este parâmetro pode ser determinado a partir da velocidade de propagação das ondas S (Vs). Em campo, os ensaios mais empregadas para determinação de Vs são o cross-hole e o down-hole. O down-hole tem sido bastante empregado com a incorporação de geofones em ponteiras de piezocone. Esse ensaio tem se mostrado uma maneira rápida, econômica e muito confiável para determinação de Go, apresentando resultados consistentes com os obtidos no ensaio cross-hole. O objetivo deste trabalho é o desenvolvimento de um sistema para realização do ensaio sísmico down-hole e sua implantação. Inúmeros ensaios foram realizados no campus da Universidade Estadual Paulista, em Bauru/SP a fim de testar os procedimentos para execução do ensaio, os equipamentos utilizados e as técnicas de interpretação, onde se observou que a manutenção do eixo de vibração dos geofones paralelo a direção de aplicação do golpe foi o fator que mais influenciou na qualidade dos sinais. Para analisar a resposta dos geofones instalados na ponteira desenvolvida, realizaram-se ensaios em laboratório, onde se verificou que os geofones apresentavam resposta idêntica ao dos acelerômetro de referência. Por fim, foram realizados ensaios em três campos experimentais no interior do Estado de São Paulo, onde estão disponíveis resultados de ensaios cross-hole e ensaios down-hole realizados com equipamentos comerciais. Os resultados obtidos com o sistema desenvolvido nestes campos permitiram validar o sistema desenvolvido. / In the design stages of geotechnical engineering of a given project, it is imperative to ascertain the maximum shear modulus (Go) of those soils experiencing dynamic loads. One common method to determine Go is to measure shear wave velocity. Most field experiments are the cross-hole and down-hole tests to determine the velocity of shear waves. The downhole test has been widely used in conjunction with geophones placed behind the tip of piezocones. The down-hole test has proven to be a fast, economic, and very reliable method to determine Go, it has produced data consistent with results obtained in cross-hole tests. The objective of this work is to present a comprehensive system for the down-hole test, which includes its implementation, execution, and the interpretation of data collected. Several tests were performed at the campus of Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, in Bauru, S.P. The objective of those experiments was to test the execution procedures and method of interpretation. It was observed the quality of the results obtained was chiefly dependent on maintaining the axis of vibration of the geophones parallel to the direction of application of the original blow. The analysis of the response by the geophones installed at the tip of the cone included experiments performed at the laboratory, where it was observed that the geophones responded identically to those accelerometers used as reference. Further, downhole experiments using system proposed here were performed in three experimental research sites of the state of São Paulo. The objective was to compare results to the data available in literature, which were obtained using commercial SCPT equipment and cross-hole tests. The down-hole testswere performed within the guidelines of the system proposed here and the results of the experiment served to corroborate the suitability of the developed system.

Thesis (S.M.)--Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering; and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), 2006. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 89-96). / Blainville's beaked whales (Mesoplodon densirostris) use broadband, ultrasonic echolocation signals (27 to 57 kHz) to search for, localize, and approach prey that generally consist of mid-water and deep-water fishes and squid. Although it is well known that the spectral characteristics of broadband echoes from marine organisms are a strong function of size, shape, orientation and anatomical group, little is known as to whether or not these or other toothed whales use spectral cues in discriminating between prey and non-prey. In order to study the prey-classification process, a stereo acoustic tag was mounted on a Blainville's beaked whale so that emitted clicks and corresponding echoes from prey could be recorded. A comparison of echoes from prey selected by the whale and those from randomly chosen scatterers suggests that the whale may have, indeed, discriminated between echoes using spectral features and target strengths. Specifically, the whale appears to have favored prey with one or more deep nulls in the echo spectra as well as ones with higher target strength. A three-dimensional, acoustic scattering model is also developed to simulate broadband scattering from squid, a likely prey of the beaked whale. / (cont.) This model applies the distorted wave Born approximation (DWBA) to a weakly-scattering, inhomogeneous body using a combined ray trace and volume integration approach. Scatterer features are represented with volume elements that are small (less than 1=12th of the wavelength) for the frequency range of interest (0 to 120 kHz). Ranges of validity with respect to material properties and numerical considerations are explored using benchmark computations with simpler geometries such as fluid-filled spherical and cylindrical fluid shells. Modeling predictions are compared with published data from live, freely swimming squid. These results, as well as previously published studies, are used in the analysis of the echo spectra of the whale's ensonified targets. / by Benjamin A. Jones. / S.M.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Biology; and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), 2008. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Includes bibliographical references. / Ecological processes at deep-sea hydrothermal vents on fast-spreading mid-ocean ridges are punctuated by frequent physical disturbance. Larval dispersal among disjunct vent sites facilitates the persistence of sessile invertebrate species in these geologically and chemically dynamic habitats despite local extinction events. Regional population extension and rapid recolonization by the siboglinid tubeworm Riftia pachyptila have been well documented along the East Pacific Rise and the Galápagos Rift. To analyze spatial and temporal population genetic patterns and the processes governing them at ephemeral and disjunct habitats, a suite of 12 highly variable microsatellite DNA markers were developed for this species. Eight of these loci were used to assess the regional and within-ridge genetic structure of recent colonists and resident adults collected from nine sites in the eastern Pacific Ocean over period of three to seven years. A significant seafloor eruption during the seven-year sampling period allowed investigation into the role of local extinction in population genetic diversity at the Tica vent site at 9°N EPR, while collections within two and five years of an eruption that created the Rosebud vent field at 86°W GAR provided insights into genetic diversity input over population establishment. For the first time, this thesis demonstrated significant genetic differences between Riftia populations on the East Pacific Rise and Galápagos Rift. Moreover, the separate treatment of colonist and resident subpopulations revealed a high potential for local larval retention at vent sites. This mechanism for recruitment likely sustains disjunct populations and supports the recolonization of locally extinct areas after disturbance events, while episodic long-distance dispersal maintains genetic coherence of the species. / (cont.) Temporal population genetic consideration at the Tica site on the East Pacific Rise suggests that the 2005-2006 seafloor eruption had little to no discernable effect on local population genetic composition. Yet local populations appear to exhibit a small degree of genetic patchiness, with a high degree of relatedness (half-sibs) among subsets of individuals within both colonist and resident cohorts. This thesis broadens the application of recently developed molecular techniques to study the effect of ridge-crest processes and offers new perspectives into marine dispersal, gene flow, and population differentiation. / by Abigail Jean Fusaro. / Ph.D.

Thesis (S.M.)--Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering; and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 54-56). / Landmines and mine-like traps are effective weapons that are difficult to detect and discriminate from a safe distance. The ability to detect landmines in their host environment at a distance and to discriminate them from other objects would be valuable for countering the landmine threat. This paper explores a standoff acoustic/laser technique to discriminate landmines from other forms of man-made objects (clutter) in an urban environment. A novel approach currently under investigation by MIT Lincoln Labs, University of Mississippi, and other groups employs a non-contact acoustic/laser technique to detect landmines from a safe standoff range. This technique uses a sound source to excite vibrations in targets with an acoustic wave. These vibrations are in turn measured remotely with a Laser Doppler Vibrometer (LDV). In this thesis, the vibration responses of landmine variants are measured, analyzed, and compared to those of common urban objects likely to be found on a landmine field or roadside. The Fourier Transform of the vibration of the target as measured by the LDV is used to generate a target vibration spectrum. Target vibration spectra in response to a sound source were experimentally measured for 59 trials, 28 of which were of simulated landmine variants and the remaining trials were of urban clutter objects. Using an algorithm adapted from a methodology for mass spectral analysis, parameters of the target signatures are estimated; then individual target signatures are classified using a Support Vector Machine (SVM) with a training set composed of parameters from the remaining members of the total population. The best results obtained from this methodology had a 71% probability of detection and a 3% false alarm rate corresponding to 20 of 28 of the simulated landmine variants correctly identified and a single clutter object misidentified as a landmine variant. / by John Houston Doherty. / S.M.

Thesis (S.M.)--Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering; and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 159-170). / This thesis formulates an estimation framework for Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) that addresses the problem of scalability in large environments. We describe an estimation-theoretic algorithm that achieves significant gains in computational efficiency while maintaining consistent estimates for the vehicle pose and the map of the environment.We specifically address the feature-based SLAM problem in which the robot represents the environment as a collection of landmarks. The thesis takes a Bayesian approach whereby we maintain a joint posterior over the vehicle pose and feature states, conditioned upon measurement data. We model the distribution as Gaussian and parametrize the posterior in the canonical form, in terms of the information (inverse covariance) matrix. When sparse, this representation is amenable to computationally efficient Bayesian SLAM filtering. However, while a large majority of the elements within the normalized information matrix are very small in magnitude, it is fully populated nonetheless. Recent feature-based SLAM filters achieve the scalability benefits of a sparse parametrization by explicitly pruning these weak links in an effort to enforce sparsity. We analyze one such algorithm, the Sparse Extended Information Filter (SEIF), which has laid much of the groundwork concerning the computational benefits of the sparse canonical form. The thesis performs a detailed analysis of the process by which the SEIF approximates the sparsity of the information matrix and reveals key insights into the consequences of different sparsification strategies. We demonstrate that the SEIF yields a sparse approximation to the posterior that is inconsistent, suffering from exaggerated confidence estimates. / (cont) This overconfidence has detrimental effects on important aspects of the SLAM process and affects the higher level goal of producing accurate maps for subsequent localization and path planning. This thesis proposes an alternative scalable filter that maintains sparsity while preserving the consistency of the distribution. We leverage insights into the natural structure of the feature-based canonical parametrization and derive a method that actively maintains an exactly sparse posterior. Our algorithm exploits the structure of the parametrization to achieve gains in efficiency, with a computational cost that scales linearly with the size of the map. Unlike similar techniques that sacrifice consistency for improved scalability, our algorithm performs inference over a posterior that is conservative relative to the nominal Gaussian distribution. Consequently, we preserve the consistency of the pose and map estimates and avoid the effects of an overconfident posterior. We demonstrate our filter alongside the SEIF and the standard EKEF both in simulation as well as on two real-world datasets. While we maintain the computational advantages of an exactly sparse representation, the results show convincingly that our method yields conservative estimates for the robot pose and map that are nearly identical to those of the original Gaussian distribution as produced by the EKF, but at much less computational expense. The thesis concludes with an extension of our SLAM filter to a complex underwater environment. We describe a systems-level framework for localization and mapping relative to a ship hull with an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) equipped with a forward-looking sonar. The approach utilizes our filter to fuse measurements of vehicle attitude and motion from onboard sensors with data from sonar images of the hull. We employ the system to perform three-dimensional, 6-DOF SLAM on a ship hull. / by Matthew R. Walter. / S.M.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Biology; and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), 2008. / This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Includes bibliographical references. / The benthic habitat is the terminal destination for marine animals in terms of their reproductive lifecycle. Recruitment dynamics relating to seasonal changes in the benthic habitat may be the best source of information for predicting recruit abundance and for marine resources management. The transition from the pelagic to the benthic phases is the last stage in the connectivity between benthic populations. The transition to the benthos may be a process that dominates recruitment dynamics to the exclusion of other characteristics of larvae such as their quality and their density. Recruitment of benthic marine animals is influenced by two seasonally varying factors of the benthic habitat. First, the availability of suitable habitat for recruitment can in large part determine the survival probability for settlers, a trend that is most pronounced for low or no survival when the settlement substrate is saturated by conspecifics from a recruitment cohort. Preemption is caused by the presence of current occupants from a recruit cohort, and it influences the settlement rate or the survival probability of conspecifics. Descriptive statistics (Chapter 2) and a field experiment (Chapter 4) highlight the role of preemption on barnacle recruitment. The second factor results from seasonal changes in environmental conditions that settlers experience in the benthic habitat, which could affect the physiology and survival probability of barnacle settlers. Highly unpredictable features of recruitment dynamics also play a role, such as wind that enhances wave action in the rocky intertidal that has been linked to the rate of settlement. Day to day variability in wind may cause patterns of settlement to be highly unpredictable. Predator induced mortality is spatially aggregated, and the random pattern of mortality in space is highly unpredictable. In contrast to these high frequency sources of recruitment variability, seasonal factors that vary at lower frequencies and that often change monotonically lend great predictive ability for recruitment dynamics. It appears that barnacles have evolved to compete for suitable habitat and have mechanisms to cope with seasonally varying environmental conditions in the benthic habitat, which may be the basis for why these features dominate the barnacle recruitment dynamic. / by Jonathan N. Blythe. / Ph.D.

The solar cell technology based on Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) thin-films provides a promising route to cost competitive solar electricity. The standard device structure is ZnO:Al/ZnO/CdS/CIGS/Mo films on a glass substrate, where the first three layers are n-type semiconductors with wide bandgaps, forming a pn-junction with the p-type CIGS absorber layer; the Mo layer serves as a back contact. This thesis deals with analysis of the generation and recombination of electron-hole pairs throughout the device. These processes determine the maximum output power: generation limits the current; recombination limits the voltage. The generation is calculated with an optical model based on complex refractive indices determined for the individual layers. The main features of the optical response of the solar cell can be reproduced with a specular model neglecting scattering. A model including ideally Lambertian scattering at the front and back surface of the CIGS absorber layer is introduced to investigate the possibility to maintain a high current generation with thin absorber layers. The result highlights the relatively poor optical performance of the Mo back contact. TiN and ZrN are explored as alternatives, and improved optical performance is experimentally demonstrated for both materials. The recombination analysis emphasizes that, in general, more than one recombination path of comparable magnitude are operative in parallel. For cells with absorber bandgap increasing from 1.0 eV (CuInSe2) to 1.7 eV (CuGaSe2), a relative increase of interface recombination is found. When these cells are subject to accelerated ageing, degradation is smallest for intermediate bandgaps; an explanation involving different sensitivity to decreased absorber band bending and activation of grain boundaries is suggested. The optical gain with ZrN back contacts is counteracted by increased back contact recombination and contact resistance, but an intermediate layer of MoSe2 is shown to alleviate these problems, allowing for an overall improved efficiency.

In this work, we study the galaxy cluster MS0735.6+7421 that hosts the most energetic observed active galactic nucleus (AGN) outburst so far. Explaining this very energetic AGN outburst is found to be challenging. McNamara et al. 2009 grappled with this problem and proposed two possible solutions: either the black hole (BH) must be an ultra massive one (with mass $> 10^{10} \ \text{M}_\odot$), or the efficiency of the mass to energy conversion ($\epsilon$) should be higher than the generally assumed value of $\epsilon \sim 0.1$. However, the efficiency of the mass to energy conversion depends on the BH's spin {Benson and Babul 2009}; higher $\epsilon$ can be achieved with a higher spinning BH. Here, we explore the second solution in detail, and ask the question: How did the BH spin up to the very high spins in advance of the outburst? We also explore the attendant physical processes, such as star formation, during the spin-up mode and investigate the associated observational implications. Comparing our results with what is generally expected from simulations and observational studies suggests that for all intents and purposes, the existence of an ultra massive BH is the simplest solution. / Graduate

Quando ocorrem solicitações dinâmicas nos solos, torna-se indispensável a determinação do módulo de cisalhamento máximo (Go) para elaboração de projetos de Engenharia Geotécnica. Este parâmetro pode ser determinado a partir da velocidade de propagação das ondas S (Vs). Em campo, os ensaios mais empregadas para determinação de Vs são o cross-hole e o down-hole. O down-hole tem sido bastante empregado com a incorporação de geofones em ponteiras de piezocone. Esse ensaio tem se mostrado uma maneira rápida, econômica e muito confiável para determinação de Go, apresentando resultados consistentes com os obtidos no ensaio cross-hole. O objetivo deste trabalho é o desenvolvimento de um sistema para realização do ensaio sísmico down-hole e sua implantação. Inúmeros ensaios foram realizados no campus da Universidade Estadual Paulista, em Bauru/SP a fim de testar os procedimentos para execução do ensaio, os equipamentos utilizados e as técnicas de interpretação, onde se observou que a manutenção do eixo de vibração dos geofones paralelo a direção de aplicação do golpe foi o fator que mais influenciou na qualidade dos sinais. Para analisar a resposta dos geofones instalados na ponteira desenvolvida, realizaram-se ensaios em laboratório, onde se verificou que os geofones apresentavam resposta idêntica ao dos acelerômetro de referência. Por fim, foram realizados ensaios em três campos experimentais no interior do Estado de São Paulo, onde estão disponíveis resultados de ensaios cross-hole e ensaios down-hole realizados com equipamentos comerciais. Os resultados obtidos com o sistema desenvolvido nestes campos permitiram validar o sistema desenvolvido. / In the design stages of geotechnical engineering of a given project, it is imperative to ascertain the maximum shear modulus (Go) of those soils experiencing dynamic loads. One common method to determine Go is to measure shear wave velocity. Most field experiments are the cross-hole and down-hole tests to determine the velocity of shear waves. The downhole test has been widely used in conjunction with geophones placed behind the tip of piezocones. The down-hole test has proven to be a fast, economic, and very reliable method to determine Go, it has produced data consistent with results obtained in cross-hole tests. The objective of this work is to present a comprehensive system for the down-hole test, which includes its implementation, execution, and the interpretation of data collected. Several tests were performed at the campus of Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, in Bauru, S.P. The objective of those experiments was to test the execution procedures and method of interpretation. It was observed the quality of the results obtained was chiefly dependent on maintaining the axis of vibration of the geophones parallel to the direction of application of the original blow. The analysis of the response by the geophones installed at the tip of the cone included experiments performed at the laboratory, where it was observed that the geophones responded identically to those accelerometers used as reference. Further, downhole experiments using system proposed here were performed in three experimental research sites of the state of São Paulo. The objective was to compare results to the data available in literature, which were obtained using commercial SCPT equipment and cross-hole tests. The down-hole testswere performed within the guidelines of the system proposed here and the results of the experiment served to corroborate the suitability of the developed system.