We present an analysis of the properties of HI holes detected in 20 galaxies that are part of “The HI Nearby Galaxy Survey” (THINGS). We detected more than 1000 holes in total in the sampled galaxies. Where they can be measured, their sizes range from about 100 pc (our resolution limit) to about 2 kpc, their expansion velocities range from 4 to 36 km/s, and their ages are estimated to range between 3 and 150 Myr. The holes are found throughout the discs of the galaxies, out to the edge of the HI disc; 23% of the holes fall outside R25. We find that shear limits the age of holes in spirals; shear is less important in dwarf galaxies which explains why HI holes in dwarfs are rounder, on average than in spirals. Shear, which is particularly strong in the inner part of spiral galaxies, also explains why we find that holes outside R25 are larger and older. We derive the scale height of the HI disc as a function of galactocentric radius and find that the disc flares at large radii in all galaxies. We proceed to derive the surface and volume porosity (Q2D and Q3D) and find that this correlates with the type of the host galaxy: later Hubble types tend to be more porous. The size distribution of the holes in our sample follows a power law with a slope of a=−2.9. Assuming that the holes are the result of massive star formation, we derive values for the supernova rate (SNR) and star formation rate (SFR) which scales with the SFR derived based on other tracers. If we extrapolate the observed number of holes to include those that fall below our resolution limit, down to holes created by a single supernova, we find that our results are compatible with the hypothesis that HI holes result from star formation. We use HI data from THINGS, 8μm, 24μm, 70μm and HI maps from SINGS, CO(2–1) data from HERACLES and FUV data from NGS to present a visual comparison of these maps with respect to the locations of HI holes. We find that the vast majority of HI holes are also prominent in the 8μm map and to some extent in the 24μm map. There is a lack of molecular gas from the interior of nearly all the holes, which is consistent with the idea that the latter are filled with hot gas. About 60% of young holes have FUV emission detected in their interiors highlighting the presence of the parent OB association. In addition, FUV is detected on the rims of some of the older HI holes, presumably due to the dispersion of the OB association with respect to the gas. We describe the development of a 2–D cross-correlation method to compare multi-wavelength maps in a quantitative way (quantified by Ccoef ) and give some first results from the application of this method to the nearby galaxy NGC2403. We find that the all the dust tracers are well correlated (Ccoef > 0.7) with the 8μm–24μm correlation being the highest (Ccoef > 0.88). Similarly all the star formation tracers are well linked as expected (Ccoef > 0.6). With respect to the relations between star formation and dust tracers we found that most are well matched (Ccoef > 0.7) as dust grains are heated by radiation in star forming regions. At smaller scales (15") FUV correlates poorly (Ccoef ~ 0.3) with the dust tracers, a direct consequence of the absorption of FUV photons by dust. We find that the HI is reasonably well correlated with the 8μm emission (Ccoef ~ 0.6) illustrating the fact that HI is mixed with PAH’s. Interestingly, the HI map shows some correlation with the SF map (Ccoef ~ 0.4) even though FUV and HI emissions were found to be completely uncorrelated (Ccoef ~ 0).

The two SCUBA HAlf-Degree Extragalactic Survey (SHADES) fields are amongst the richest places in the sky in terms of multi-wavelength coverage. They comprise an eastern section of the Lockman Hole (LH) and the central portion of the Subaru- XMM/Newton Deep Field (SXDF). In this thesis, I have obtained extremely deep, multi-frequency radio imaging of the SHADES fields using the GiantMetre-wave Radio Telescope (GMRT) and the Very Large Array (VLA), at 610MHz and 1.4GHz, respectively. These data are used to analyse the nature of the sub-milliJansky (sub-mJy) radio population, which has been hotly debated in the last few years: are they powered by star-forming or nuclear activity? To tackle the problem, I employ different approaches making use of the large variety of multi-wavelength data in the SHADES fields. I begin by analysing the spectral index, α610MHz 1.4GHz , of radio sources detected in the LH, to explore the dominant emission mechanism. Based on a robust 10 σ detection criterion, I find a constantmedian spectral index of α610MHz 1.4GHz ≈ −0.6 to −0.7 for sources between S1.4GHz ≈ 200 μJy and 10mJy. This result suggests that the galaxy population in the sub-mJy regime is powered by optically-thin synchrotron emission – starforming galaxies or lobe-dominated active galactic nuclei (AGN). Making use of X-ray observations in the LH, I show that the fraction of radio sources detected in the hard X-ray band (between 2 and 10 keV) decreases from 50 to 15 per cent between S1.4GHz ≈ 1mJy and . 100 μJy, which strongly suggests a transition from AGN to star-forming galaxies. Based on the deep, multi-wavelength coverage of the SXDF, I explore the behaviour of the far-infrared (FIR)/radio correlation as a function of redshift. I combine the q24 factor – the logarithmic flux density ratio between Spitzer 24-μm and VLA 1.4- GHz flux densities – with available photometric redshifts and find strong evidence that the correlation holds out to z ≈ 3.5. Based on M82-like k-corrections and using a high-significance (S1.4GHz > 300 μJy) radio sub-sample, I find a mean and scatter of q24 = 0.71 ± 0.47. Monte-Carlo simulations based on these findings show that fewer sources deviate from the correlation at fainter flux densities (i.e. fewer radioloud AGN). I predict that the radio-loud fraction drops from 50 per cent at ∼ 1mJy to zero at . 100 μJy. The validity of the FIR/radio correlation out to very high redshifts adds credibility to identifications of sub-millimetre (submm) galaxies (SMGs) made at radio wavelengths. Based on a sample of 45 radio-identified SMGs in the LH, I find a median radio spectral index of α610MHz 1.4GHz = −0.72 ± 0.07, which suggests that optically-thin synchrotron is the dominant radio emission mechanism. Finally, as anAppendix I include a theoretical treatment that constrains the average geometry of the dusty, torus-like structures believed to obscure a large fraction of the AGN population. I use the distribution of column densities (NH) obtained from deep ∼ 1Msec X-ray observations in the Chandra Deep Field South. I find that to reproduce the wide observed range of NH, the best torus model is given by a classical “donut”- shaped distribution with an exponential angular dependency of the density profile.

This work aimed at studying biophysical properties of two membrane proteins, one of potential nanotechnological use, bacteriorhodopsin, and one potential drug target, the NTS1 neurotensin receptor, at the single molecule scale. Bacteriorhodopsin (BR) is the only protein in the purple membrane (PM) of the halophilic organism Halobacterium salinarium. It is a light-driven proton pump converting light into a transmembrane proton gradient through isomerization of its retinal chromophore. Its stability, as well as its photoactivity remaining in dry protein layers, has made BR an attractive material for biomolecular devices. Numerous studies have been published on this topic; however, they have all used BR within the PM, on relatively large (µm-wide) surfaces. Here, conducting-probe atomic force microscopy (C-AFM) analysis was performed after removing most of the membrane lipids. For the first time, it was shown that the molecular conductance of BR can be reversibly photoswitched with predictable wavelength sensitivity. Intimate and robust coupling to gold electrodes was achieved by using a strategically engineered cysteine which, combined with partial delipidation, generated protein trimers homogenously orientated on the surface. Numerous controls using biophysical (SPR, ellipsometry, Kelvin-probe AFM) and chemical (photocurrent, cyclic voltammetry) techniques confirmed the wavelength specificity of the photoswitch, the anchoring role of the mutation and the homogenous orientation of the protein on the gold surface. Neurotensin is a brain and gastrointestinal 13 amino acid peptide acting as a neuromodulator in the central nervous system and as a hormone in the periphery. Its wide range of biological activities is primarily mediated through its binding to the neurotensin type 1 receptor (NTS1). NTS1 expressed in E.coli was purified and inserted into 100 nm brain polar lipid liposomes in a conformation which retained its ligand-binding capabilities. Initial AFM characterisation was performed as a prelude for ligand-receptor interaction studies, including high resolution imaging, force spectroscopy and solid state NMR approaches.

The acceptance and the use of cold-formed steel sections has significantly increased in recent years due to advantages such as consistency and accuracy of profile, ease of fabrication, high strength and stiffness to the lightness in the weight. For thin-walled columns, made by folding a plane plate into a section, it is possible that when they are subjected to compression loads they may buckle either locally, if the member is very short, or globally if the member is very long. In addition to local and global buckling, a thin-walled member of an open cross section may also show buckling involving a “distortion” of the cross section. Compared to local and global buckling, distortional buckling is not very familiar and has been discovered only in thin-walled members of open cross sections such as cold-formed steel section columns. The objective of this study is to investigate the behavior of polygonal semi-closed cross-section with pure compression. The study comprise to only elastic buckling and the methodology is consisted by using CUFSM analysis. In order to execute CUFSM of polygonal profiles, the scripts have created which match the Matlab script files (m-files) downloaded from CUFSM 4 open source. The distortional buckling mode is governing as a buckling failure, which occur and dominate in the cases where spring values are 100 kN or higher. However, the contrary result reveals by a decreasing of the spring values. The behavior of the cross-section is dependent on how the interaction of different buckling modes prevails at the corresponding critical half-wavelength. Considering the predomination of distortional buckling mode indicates that the most of polygonal cross-section do not behave as rigid, i.e. as whole cross-section. A reducing of distortional mode and increasing of local mode as well as global mode gives indication that the behavior of the cross-section has changed and turned significantly into more rigid and thus is expected to behave more as whole cross-section.  The more spring values decrease, the higher global mode arises and dominates for the lower slenderness range. The critical half-wavelength for each profile illustrates the needed density between bolts on the longitudinal part of the member. In the interest of eliminating distortional buckling failure, due the fact that distortional buckling is unpredictable, the bolt-density should be lower than the corresponding half-wavelength for the profile where the distortional mode is predominating.

Um Luminescent Solar Concentrators (LSC) é basicamente uma base plástica transparente ou vidro contendo centros luminescentes.Enquanto o recente avanço dos conversores de comprimento de onda tenha aberto novas possibilidades para o desenvolvimento de células solares mais eficientes, estes também abriram novas frentes de pesquisa.Uma destas frentes envolve os problemas encontrados com o uso de novos materiais. Como por exemplo, transferência de energia em polímeros. Surgem propriedades interessantes a respeito dos processos luminescentes ao longo destes sistemas planares.Por estes motivos esses sistemas podem ser aplicados como dispositivos optoeletrônicos, sensores e também em conversores de comprimento de onda. Este estudo descreve a fabricação de guias de onda planares multipoliméricos baseados em uma matrix acrílica (PMMA) dopada com polímeros emissores de luz. A função desta blenda polimérica é absorver um largo espectro de luz e re-emitir ao longo do guia de onda. Os dispositivos foram estudados em termos de suas características de absorção, emissão e excitação.Os polímeros emissores utilizados neste trabalho foram: MEH-PPV, Super Yellow, ADS-108GE, ADS-329BE, e LAPS-16. Estes materiais foram dissolvidos em tolueno e depositados pela técnica casting sobre substratos de vidro contendo filmes metálicos de alumínio.Usando esta configuração, a luz de excitação incidente é acoplada ao guia de onda por absorção e re-emissão através dos polímeros luminescentes. O estudo dos LSCs é realizado por medidas das emissões laterais e normais dos guias. Estes guias apresentam um espectro de emissão com características típicas de uma cavidade do tipo Fabri-Perot, com linhas extremamente estreitas (3 nm) e altamente polarizadas na direção paralela (modo TE) e perpendicular (TM) ao plano do guia de onda.A emissão destes guias é fortemente dependente de sua geometria e do índice de refração efetivo. Os mesmos filmes poliméricos, porém mais espessos (30 m), foram utilizados como conversores de comprimento de onda visando aplicação em conversores solares luminescentes (Luminescence Solar Converters, ou LSCs). O uso de baixas concentrações das moléculas utilizadas foi necessário para evitar possíveis formações de agregados quando altas concentrações de PMMA são utilizadas na preparação dos filmes. A metalização de uma das faces planares possibilitou o aumento da eficiência de conversão dos comprimentos de onda nos LSCs. A luminescência total dos polímeros é completamente convertida em luz de alto comprimento de onda na emissão lateral.Este processo não depende do comprimento de onda de excitação. A metalização de uma das faces planares possibilitou o aumento da eficiência de conversão dos LSCs. Neste sistema, a luz absorvida é convertida em luz de alto comprimento de onda e alta pureza espectral através de processos de reabsorção, relaxação interna e re-emissão que ocorrem ao longo do plano do LSC. A eficiência de conversão e as perdas em função da concentração polimérica na matriz foram estudadas para os LSCs.O escape dos fótons nas interfaces para ângulos menores que o ângulo crítico (c=arcsen(1/n)) e processos de transferência de energia em LSCs com alta concentração polimérica devem ser otimizados para sua aplicação como dispositivos. / Luminescent Solar Concentrators (LSC) are basically composed of a transparent plastic or glass substrate containing luminescent centers.While the recent advance in wavelength converters has opened up many new possibilities for development of more efficient photovoltaic cells, they have also raised new issues. A number of these issues involve problems of dealing with new materials and the understanding of physical process like energy transfer in polymers. Interesting features arise from the luminescent process along these planar systems. Therefore this system can be applied as optoelectronics devices, sensors and also in wavelength converters. This study describes the fabrication of planar multi-polymeric optical waveguides based on acrylic matrix (PMMA) doped with a light emitting polymers. The function of thispolymeric blendis to absorb a broad spectrum of light and re-emit it along the waveguide. The devices were studied in terms of its absorption, emission and excitation characteristics.The emitting polymers used in this research are: poly[2-methoxy-5-(2-ethyl-hexyloxy)-1,4-phenylenevinylene] (MEH-PPV), Super Yellow, Poly[(9,9-dioctyl-2,7-divinylenefluorenylene)-alt-co-{2-methoxy-5-(2-ethyl-hexyloxy)-1,4-phenylene}] called ADS108GE, Poly(9,9-dioctylfluorenyl-2,7-diyl) called ADS239BE, and poli-(9,9-n-dihexil-2,7-fluorenodilvinilene-alt-1,4-fenilenovinileno) or Laps16. Films of these materials dissolved in toluene were deposited by casting the polymethacrylate solution on top of a glass substrate containing a reflective aluminum layer. Using this configuration, the incident excitation light is coupled to the wave guide by its absorption and then re-emitted by the luminescent polymers. The LSCs characterization was carried out by measuring the lateral and the normal emissions of the guide. These waveguides show a light emission spectrum with characteristics similar to the Fabri-Perot cavity, where very narrow peaks (3 nm) and highly polarized emission in both TE and TM modes were observed. In addition, the emission is strongly dependent on its geometry and the effective refraction index. In other hand, thicker polymeric guides (30 m) were used as luminescence solar converters (LSCs). The optimal concentration of conjugated polymers solutions has to be very low in order to avoid the formation of aggregates since high PMMA concentrations have to be used in the LSC preparation.The total polymeric luminescence is fully converted to light of high wavelength for the case of lateral emission. This process does not depend on the excitation wavelength. The conversion efficiency was increased by evaporating metals on one planar face of the LSC. In this structure, light is absorbed and then converted to a higher wavelength with high spectral pureness through re-absorption, relaxation and re-emission processes occurring along the LSC plane. The conversion efficiency and the losses along the converter were studied as a function of the polymeric concentration, in order to optimize these structures. A better understanding of the process of energy transfer and photon leakage through the interfaces for angles smaller than the critical angle (c=arcsen(1/n)) is necessary for using LSCs as applied devices.

Cette thèse vise à montrer rapport d'un lidar multispectral, en particulier en ajoutant des longueurs d'onde dans le proche infrarouge proche, pour la caractérisation des aérosols. En effet par rapport à un lidar mono-longueur d'onde, l'information contenue dans les profils multispectraux permet de remonter aux propriétés microphysiques des aérosols (distribution en aille et composition). Pour cela un simulateur de signaux lidar multispectraux a été adapté à notre étude afin de pouvoir développer et tester deux méthodes permettant de retrouver les propriétés microphysiques des aérosols le long de la ligne e visée à partir de signaux lidar synthétiques. La première méthode, basée sur l'inversion des signaux lidar, permet de retrouver la répartition en taille des aérosols et donc d'en déduire notamment leur concentration et leur rayon modal. Cette méthode nécessite des informations a priori sur les aérosols. Un bilan d'erreur a été réalisé en introduisant des incertitudes sur ces paramètres a priori et montre que les résultats obtenus sur la concentration et le rayon modal sont précis (respectivement 16% et 17% d'erreur). Cette méthode présente l'avantage de ne pas nécessiter d'étalonnage absolu de l'instrument. La deuxième méthode est basée sur la minimisation de l'écart entre des signaux simulés et les signaux que l'on étudie. Même si la précision obtenue sur la répartition en taille retrouvée est plus faible (35% et 40 % d'erreur sur la concentration t le rayon modal) et que la constante d'étalonnage de l'instrument doit être connue, cette méthode a l'avantage de retrouver la composition des aérosols dans 74 % des cas. / The purpose of this thesis is to show the contribution of a multispectral Iidar for the characterisation of aerosols, in particular hen wavelengths in near infrared are added. Indeed, compared with a mono-wavelength Iidar, the information contained in multispectral profiles allow to retrieve the microphysical properties of aerosols (particule size distribution and composition). To this end, we adapted a multispectral Iidar signal simulator to our study in order to develop and test two methods which objective is to obtain the microphysical properties of aerosol along the line-of-sight from synthetic lidar signals. The first method, based on the inversion of lidar signals, enables to find the length distribution of aerosols and therefore to educe their concentration and their modal radius. This method requires a priori information about the aerosols. An error budget was made by introducing uncertainties on the a priori parameters. It shows that the results obtained regarding the concentration and modal radius are accurate (respectively 16% and 17% uncertainty). The advantage of this method is that it does not require absolute calibration of the instrument. The principle of the second method is to minimize the difference between the studied and the simulated signals. Even if the accuracy on the size distribution is lower (35% and 40% on the concentration and modal radius) and the calibration constant of the instrument has to be known, this method has the advantage to find the concentration of the aerosols in 74% of the cases. Finally, the first method was validated on real data, coming from a collaboration with the RSLab (Barcelona), by comparing ur results with those obtained by this team (7% difference on the modal radius).

O uso do LIBS na agricultura tem crescido nos últimos anos, sendo usando na atualidade para avaliar composição elementar de solos e fertilizantes, detectar a presença de metais pesados em solos e água, monitorar a emissão de carbono para a atmosfera e predizer doenças em plantas ainda em suas primeiras fases de desenvolvimento. Esta técnica é considerada bastante promissora na agricultura devido a sua capacidade de detecção elementar rápida, com pouca ou nula necessidade de preparação da amostra e por não gerar resíduos químicos. Apesar disto, apresenta ainda grandes desafios, principalmente em amostras complexas como o solo, devido a efeitos de matriz, por exemplo. Neste cenário, a determinação das características do sistema LIBS mais adequado para a análise de solo é importante, pois isto permitirá a escolha adequada da configuração a ser usada para se obter resultados de maior acurácia. Assim, nesta tese são comparados dois sistemas experimentais LIBS com lasers de 532 nm (modelo Brilliant, da Quantel, monomodo) e 1064 nm (modelo ULTRA, da Quantel, multimodo), analisando a temperatura e densidade eletrônica do plasma através do método de Saha-Boltzmann, para em seguida verificar a condição de LTE. Para analisar qual sistema teve maior eficiência no processo de ablação se comparou as crateras formadas na amostra, por meio de MEV. A relação entre o sinal e o ruído também foi observada para picos de importantes nutrientes encontrados no solo: carbono (247,84 nm), ferro (244,45 nm), magnésio (280,27 nm) e potássio (766,48 nm). Para verificar o desempenho de ambos os sistemas na determinação quantitativa destes mesmos nutrientes, foram utilizados modelos multivariados através de PLS, como uma alternativa a calibração tradicional com o modelo univariado. Em relação ao sinal/ruído, o sistema de 1064 nm apresentou melhor resultado, a temperatura para ambos os sistemas foi semelhante e o sistema de 532 nm se mostrou mais eficiente no processo de ablação. Contudo, para a quantificação elementar, ambos os sistemas possibilitaram a construção de curvas de calibração lineares com R2 > 0, 85 utilizando PLS, enquanto que utilizando o modelo univariado a correlação foi menor a 0; 8 para todas as curvas de calibração. O RMSEP foi menor para o modelo obtido a partir do sistema de 532 nm para o ferro e carbono, enquanto que para o potássio e magnésio o sistema de 1064 nm apresentou menor RMSEP. Considerando as vantagens econômicas do laser de 1064 nm, este mostrou um excelente custo/benefício, em comparação ao laser de 532 nm, além de ser mais compacto. / The use of LIBS in agriculture has grown in recent years being currently used to evaluate the elementary composition of soils and fertilizers, to detect the presence of heavy metals in soils and water, to monitor the carbon emissions to the atmosphere and to predict diseases in plants, still in its early stages of development. This technique is considering to be very promising in agriculture because of its fast elemental detection capability, with minimum or no sample preparation and no chemical residues generation. Although, it presents great challenges, especially in complex samples such as soil, due to matrix effects, for example. In this scenario, determining the type of the most suitable LIBS system for the analysis for soil is important as this will allows the best choice of the configuration to be used obtaining more accurate results. Thus, in this thesis two experimental LIBS systems are compared with 532 nm (single mode from Quantel, Brilliant) and 1064 nm (multimode from Ultra, Quantel) lasers, analyzing the plasma temperature and electronic density through the Saha-Boltzmann method, and these will verify the lower bound of the LTE condition. In order to analyze which system had the highest efficiency in the ablation process, the craters formed in the sample were compared by MEV. The relationship between the signal and the noise was also observed for peaks of important nutrients found in the soil: carbon (247.84 nm), iron (244,45 nm), magnesium (280,27 nm) and potassium (766,48 nm)). To verify the performance of both systems to the quantitative determination of these same nutrients, the multivariate model PLS was used, as an alternative to traditional calibration with the univariate model. In relation to the signal/noise ratio, the 1064 nm laser had better results, the temperature for both systems was similar and the 532 nm laser shown more efficiency in the ablation process. However, for the elementary quantification, both systems allowed the construction of calibration linear curves with R2 > 0, 85 using PLS, whereas using a univariate model the correlation was lower than 0,8 for any of the calibration curves. The RMSEP was lower for the model obtained with the 532 nm system for iron and carbon, while for potassium and magnesium the 1064 nm laser showed RMSEP lower. Considering the economical advantages of the multimode 1064 nm laser, it shown an excellent cost benefit, in comparision of the single mode 532 nm, besides being more compact.

Centralized light source (CLS) at the central office is an attractive solution for low-cost implementation of WDM-PON, as it eliminates the need of wavelength-specific transmitters and wavelength management at the optical network units (ONU). CLS can be realized by either a carrier-distributed scheme or a remodulation scheme. In both schemes, however, the upstream signal is susceptible to the interferometric crosstalk induced by the beating between the upstream signal and the back-reflected light due to the intrinsic Rayleigh Backscattering (RB), both of which are of the same wavelength. We propose and demonstrate a simple and novel scheme to suppress the RB noise in the carrier-distributed WDM-PON. Differential phase-shift keying (DPSK) is used as the upstream modulation format and the destructive port of the delay-interferometer (DI) is employed to demodulate the upstream DPSK signal. As the spectrum of RB towards the OLT is narrow due to the very narrow spectrum of the distributed carrier, the RB noise can be considerably rejected by the notch filter-like destructive port of the DI at the OLT, which is used simultaneously to demodulate the upstream DPSK signal. The scheme can also be extended to the application in the remodulation-based WDM-PON, as long as the downstream signal has a narrow spectrum (i.e. via reducing downstream modulation depth). A unique feature of the DPSK signal with reduced modulation depth (RMD-DPSK) is that it can be demodulated by DI's destructive port without extinction ratio (ER) degradation, whereas the demodulated signal from DI's destructive port has a very low ER and can be used as the source for upstream remodulation. We also proposed a novel offset-Manchester coding to suppress Rayleigh noise in electrical domain via a postdetection high-pass filter. / Foreseeing the rapidly growing demand for multimedia services and the trend of service convergence, the penetration of optical fiber in access network is an ultimate solution to break the last-mile bottleneck imposed by the 100-year-old copper network. One of the most promising solutions to realize optical access is the passive optical network (PON), in which the network infrastructure is shared by many subscribers and has no active elements between the central office and the customer. Thus a PON requires neither electrical power nor active management, leading to effective reduction in operational expenses. Time-division-multiplexed passive optical networks (TDM-PONs) such as Ethernet PON (EPON) and Gigabit PON (GPON) are being widely deployed in current fiber-based access networks for providing broadband access, offering triple-play services including video, data and voice. In the near future, wavelength-division-multiplexed passive optical network (WDM-PON) can be the enabler of the next-generation optical broadband access that requires large dedicated and symmetric bandwidth, data privacy, and upgrade flexibility. TDM-PONs also can benefit from WDM technologies for capacity upgrade. / With more diverse multimedia and data services available for broadband access, the access network has to be flexible enough to cope with various data or video delivery such as broadcast/multicast services, in addition to the point-to-point traffic. Multicast is more attractive, compared to broadcast, as it allows selective control of the connection for each subscriber individually. Multicast can be easily realized in TDM-PONs as it employs power-splitting at the remote node (RN). However, it is more challenging in WDM-PONs, due to the dedicated connection between the optical line terminal (OLT) and each ONU. Many studies have been carried out to solve this problem. The prior schemes either need relatively complicated multicast control and/or cannot support future proof 10-Gb/s symmetric point-to-point (PtP) transmission. We proposed a novel multicast control scheme for a WDM-PON with 10-Gb/s symmetric bit rate. The multicast data encoded in DPSK format is superimposed onto all PtP channels modulated in inverse return-to-zero format. With an athermal Dr being used at the ONU to demodulate the DPSK signal, the multicast data can be effectively disabled by slight detuning the laser wavelength at OLT, which has negligible effect on the PtP data. The proposed scheme differs from all the previous schemes in that, the multicast control is realized via the inherent wavelength management of WDM systems, rather than via any other additional adjustment such as ER, synchronization, and polarization. v / Xu, Jing. / Adviser: Lian-Kuan Chen. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 73-06, Section: B, page: . / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2011. / Includes bibliographical references. / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [201-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract also in Chinese.

Nowadays, broadband applications, such as interactive video and multimedia services, have further increased the demand of bandwidth, and thus make high speed multi-wavelength optical access network highly desirable. Wavelength division multiplexing passive optical network (WDM-PON) is a promising candidate to realize the next generation optical access networks due to its dedicated bandwidth for each subscriber and more flexible bandwidth management. As the network traffic is becoming more data-centric, more networking capabilities are required to provide the data service in a more flexible and reliable way. In this thesis, we have proposed and investigated several interesting optical multicast overlay schemes and network protection architectures for WDM-PONs. Optical multicast overlay technique can support the additional multicast transmission on the existing point-to-point data services, while network protection architectures can assure network availability with short traffic restoration time. We will briefly discuss our work in the following sub-topics. / Optical multicast overlay in WDM-PON: Traditional WDM-PONs support only two-way point-to-point data transmission between the optical line terminal (OLT) and the individual subscribers, via the respective designated set of wavelengths. To enhance the network flexibility, it is more desirable to support various different modes of data or video delivery such as broadcast and multicast, in addition to point-to-point transmissions. In this thesis, we systematically investigate the problems and propose our several feasible schemes to overlay multicast transmission onto the existing point-to-point traffic in a WDM-PON. In the first approach, the control of the multicast transmission is achieved by a simple polarization-assisted scheme at the OLT. By the cross-use of wavelengths, a separate path is provided for the multicast differential phase shift keying (DPSK) data from downstream point-to-point amplitude shift keying (ASK) data without additional light sources, which guarantees the transmission performances in both directions, since the upstream ASK signal is imposed on the multicast DPSK signal. We have also demonstrated its variant, in which an optical switch replaces the polarization-assisted control for multicast transmission. The second approach is based on the optical carrier suppression (OCS) technique at the OLT so as to generate the optical subcarriers or sidebands for multicast ASK data modulation. The downstream unicast data is modulated in DPSK format, which will be re-modulated with the upstream ASK data at the respective optical network unit (ONU). As the downstream unicast signal and the upstream signal are calTied on different fiber feeders, while the upstream signal and the multicast signal are carried on different subcarriers, though on the same fiber feeder, the possible Rayleigh backscattering effect is much alleviated. In the third scheme, by using subcarrier modulation technique, we have first successfully overlaid two independent multicast data streams simultaneously onto a WDM-PON, which is believed to further enhance the network capability for multiple destination traffic and improve the cost effectiveness for the future network. Finally, we will provide a comprehensive comparison on all the proposed schemes in this topic. / Survivable network architectures for WDM-PONs: A survivable WDM-PON architecture which can provide self-protection is attractive to avoid enormous loss in data and business due to fiber cuts. To facilitate the network management, the protection switching is realized at the OLT. In this thesis, a simple centrally controlled survivable WDM-PON architecture employing OCS technique is proposed. Protection switching at the OLT employs electrical switches to control the clock signal for the protection sub-carrier generation, via optical carrier suppression. Both distribution and feeder fibers are protected simultaneously. By employing inverse-RZ (IRZ) format for the downstream transmission and non-retum-to-zero (NRZ) for the upstream re-modulated signal, the optical network units are kept colorless and simple. On the other hand, wavelength division multiplexing/time division multiplexing (WDM/TDM) hybrid network, which combines TDM technology and WDM technology, can further increase the network reach, transmission capacity, and reduces the cost per subscriber. Although the bandwidth per subscriber in a WDM/TDM PON is less than that in a WDM-PON, it is still considered as a smooth migration from TDM-PON to WDM-PON. In this thesis, we have proposed a novel WDM/TDM PON architecture which can provide self-protection using a ring topology to connect the subscribers. Finally, we will provide a comprehensive comparison on all the proposed schemes in this topic. / Qiu, Yang. / Adviser: Chun-Kit Chan. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 73-06, Section: B, page: . / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2011. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 130-140). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [201-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract also in Chinese.

Thin-film inorganic solar cells, such as CdTe, have demonstrated the most promise to date for a viable low-cost renewable energy resource. Their current performance, however, is far from the theoretical limit suffering from significant charge recombination losses due to grain boundaries and point defects. It is likely that the microscopic compositions of grain bulk and grain boundaries are significantly different and not optimal for the overall device performance. Good understanding of charge transport along and across the grain boundaries and other microscopic interfaces is lacking, preventing the development of reliable and predictive device models. The insufficient microscopic understanding hinders efficient characterization of photovoltaic materials and also holds back the development of process control techniques. We first show preliminary results for a novel technique, quantum-dot electron-beam induced current to characterize semiconductors in the near-field. We also propose the use of near-field optical scanning microscopy for high precision optical excitation and for local, high-resolution characterization. These imaging techniques are examined with the goal of synthesizing information obtained by both methods, of material phenomena at the relevant length scales, to other measurement methods. The most important nanoscale phenomena being the separation of compositional and electrical effects.