Spatially-resolved measurements of flame temperature have been demonstrated with diode lasers for the first time. The technique is based on the use of blue diode lasers to perform laser-induced fluorescence on indium atoms seeded to the flame. Temperature measurements have been carried out in laminar flames both by the two-line atomic fluorescence technique, and also by a novel line-shape thermometry method that requires the use of only a single diode laser. The first part of this work involved the development of blue extended cavity diode lasers with favourable tuning properties. Two custom-designed extended cavity diode lasers (ECDL) have been built, emitting at wavelengths of around 410 nm and 451 nm respectively. These devices are capable of mode-hop free tuning over ranges greater than 90 GHz. The performance of these devices exceeds that of commercially available systems and a patent application has been filed. High resolution fluorescence spectroscopy has been performed on both the 52P1/2→62S1/2 and 52P3/2→62S1/2 transitions of indium atoms seeded at trace quantities into atmospheric pressure flames. In both cases, the spectra obtained show excellent agreement with a theoretical fit based on the individual hyperfine components of the transition. The two ECDLs have been used to build a sensor for the measurement of temperature in combustion systems. It is much simpler, more compact, less expensive, and more versatile than any previously existing device. The two lasers were used sequentially to probe indium atoms seeded to the flame. The ratio of the resulting fluorescence signals is related to the relative populations in the two sub-levels of the spin-orbit split ground state of indium, and thus to the temperature. Temperature measurements have been successfully performed in a laminar flame and the data thus obtained do not need to be corrected by any ‘calibration constant’. This novel thermometry technique offers a robust alternative to traditional methods involving bulky high power lasers. A further development has been made by demonstrating a fluorescence line-shape thermometry technique requiring only a single diode laser excitation source. Progress has been made towards the goal of rapid temperature measurements appropriate to the study of turbulent flames. This involved the development of a simple technique for actively locking the wavelength of the blue diode laser to a resonance line of the tellurium molecule. A high-speed thermometry system would work by rapidly switching between the two locked laser beams using an optical modulator.

Lors de ces vingt dernières années, de nouvelles techniques de refroidissement et de manipulation des atomes ont permis le développement de senseurs inertiels basés sur l’interférométrie atomique. Le projet ICE est un interféromètre atomique double espèce qui a pour objectif de tester le principe d’équivalence faible. Afin d’augmenter la sensibilité de l’instrument, l’expérience est réalisée en micro-gravité lors de vols paraboliques à borde l’Airbus A300 zero-g de Novespace. L’interféromètre est composé de deux espèces atomiques (87Rb et 39K) ayant des transitions atomiques très proches (780 et 767nm). Ces longueurs d’ondes sont générées par une source laser bi-fréquence ultra-stable. Issue des technologies telecom et ensuite doublées en fréquence, elle est capable de résister aux contraintes des vols paraboliques. Précédemment, des mesures d’accélérations furent réalisées par un interféromètre Rubidiumen 1g et 0g en vol. Récemment, à l’aide d’un nouveau dispositif expérimental reposant sur une nouvelle enceinte à vide en titane, nous avons réalisé un des premiers accéléromètres Potassium. Cet atome présente en effet certaines difficultés à refroidir et à manipuler et demande un excellent contrôle des différents paramètres expérimentaux.Je présente ainsi dans ce manuscrit, les résultats obtenus avec le Rubidium et le Potassium sur le nouveau dispositif expérimental, et les récents progrès réalisés en vue d’un accéléromètre double espèce Rb/K. / During the last two decades, new techniques to cool and manipulate atoms has enabled the development of inertial sensors based on atom interferometry. The ICE project aims to verify the weak equivalence principle (WEP) using a compact and transportable dual-species atom interferometer. To make precise tests of the WEP, this experiment is performed in a micro-gravity environment during parabolic flights onboard the Novespace zero-g aircraft. The interferometer is composed of two atomic species (87Rb et 39K) with similar transition wavelengths (780 nm and 767 nm), which are derived from frequency-doubled telecom lasers. This ultra-stable laser source is able to withst and the parabolic flight and their rough conditions.In previous work, we have demonstrated measurements from a cold rubidium interferometer during the 1g and 0g phases during flights. Recently, we manage to carry out one of the first gravimeter with 39K in a new titanium vacuum system. This is a huge achievement because this atom is hard to cool down and to manipulate. I will present in this thesis, the results with Rubidium and Potassium on the newset-up, I we will report on recent progress toward a double species 87Rb/39K interferometer.

Le travail présenté dans ce manuscrit porte sur deux sujets distincts. Le premier concerne la réponse d'un diélectrique cristallin à un champ électrique uniforme ; il s'ancre sur la théorie moderne de la polarisation développée par King-Smith, Vanderbilt et Resta. En nous restreignant d'abord au cas unidimensionnel, nous décrivons de manière perturbative à faible champ électrique le spectre de Wannier-Stark d'un modèle de bande. Nous utilisons ensuite ce développement dans une approche thermodynamique que nous modifions pour palier aux problèmes posés par le caractère non-borné du spectre de Wannier-Stark : nous introduisons en particulier un potentiel chimique local assurant la neutralité électrique locale au sein du cristal. Cette approche permet d'accéder à la polarisation et à la susceptibilité électrique des cristaux diélectriques. Finalement, nous étendons le travail effectué au cas bidimensionnel où de nouvelles caractéristiques associé aux isolants topologiques apparaissent.Le deuxième sujet porte sur la synchronisation de spin dans les gaz d'atomes froids. Nous étudions la compétition entre le mécanisme d'écho de spin et le phénomène d'auto-synchronisation lié à l'effet de rotation des spins identiques (emph{ISRE}). La méthode de l'écho de spin permet de compenser certains déphasage apparaissant dans une gaz d'atomes ultra-froid piégé, et accroît ainsi le temps de cohérence de l'ensemble. L'emph{ISRE} apparaît dans les gaz denses via les collisions entre atomes et conduit également à un accroissement du temps de cohérence. Nous montrons que ces deux mécanismes ne sont pas systématiquement compatibles. En particulier, leur compatibilité est lié à la relation entre les échelles de temps propres à chacun des phénomènes. / The work exposed in this manuscript covers two distinct topics. The first is about the response of crystalline dielectrics to an external static electric field; it is based on King-Smith, Vanderbilt and Resta modern theory of polarisation. Restricting ourselves to the 1D case, we first describe the Wannier-Stark ladder of a band model with a low-field perturbative approach. We then use this development to derive the thermodynamical response of the band model. We have to modify the usual thermodynamics to account for the unboundedness of the Wannier-Stark spectrum, through the introduction of a local chemical potentiel which ensures local electric neutrality in the crystal. In a last step, we extend our approch to the 2D cas, where new characteristics related to the topic of topological insulators appear.The second topic tackles synchronization and spin-echo in cold atom gases. We study the competition between the spin-echo mechanism and the self-synchronization mechanism which emerges from the identical spin rotation effet (emph{ISRE}). The spin-echo thechnique was built to compensate for some the of dephasing that appears in trapped ultra-cold gases, leading to an increased coherence time for the ensemble. The emph{ISRE} appears in dense atomic clouds where collisions also lead to an increased coherence time. We show that these two mechanism are not always compatible, in particular, their compatibility is based on the relation between the time scales associated to both phenomena.

Quantum mechanics became a foundation for incessant development of versatile computational methods for analysis of chemical and physical properties of molecules and crystals. A huge progress has been made in the fifield of density functional theory, since nowadays this theory offers the best compromise between precision of results and efficiency fiof computation. The chemical bonding analysis can be easily performed with real space methods based on chemical concepts introduced via partitioning of real space into chemically meaningful domains, since the orbital based approach is not well applicable due to the delocalized nature of plane waves. However the practical usage of those methods often requires a signifificant amount of computational resources. Some methods require the evaluation of so called domain overlap matrices, that is a formidable task for complex and low-symmetry systems. In the present research the author enables the investigation of complex solid compounds with real space chemical bonding indicators by introducing the derivation of the expression for the evaluation of the domain overlap matrix elements from the projected-augmented wave method. The corresponding program module was developed, which is capable to perform the real space chemical bonding analysis with a number of methods, like electron localizability indicators, electron localization function, localization/delocalization indices and domain averaged Fermi hole orbitals. The efficiency and the accuracy of the developed implementation is demonstrated by the comparison with the domain overlap matrix elements evaluation from the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method on a set of simple compounds with three atoms per primitive cell at most. A set of complex periodic structures is analyzed and the capability of the present implementation to unravel intricate chemical bonding patterns is demonstrated.

The deterministic generation and manipulation of quantum states has attracted much interest ever since the rise of quantum mechanics. Large-scale, distributed quantum states are the basis for novel applications such as quantum communication, quantum remote sensing, distributed quantum computing or quantum voting protocols. The necessary infrastructure will be provided by distributed quantum networks, allowing for quantum bit processing and storage at single nodes. Quantum states of light then allow for inter-node transmission of quantum information. Transmission losses in optical fibers may be overcome by quantum repeaters, the quantum equivalent of classical signal amplifiers. The fragility of quantum superposition states makes building such networks very challenging. Hybrid solutions combine the strengths of different physical systems: Efficient quantum memories can be realized using alkali atoms such as rubidium. Leading in the deterministic generation of single photons and polarization entangled photon pairs are semiconductor InAs/GaAs quantum dots grown by the Stranski-Krastanov method. Despite remarkable progress in the last twenty years, complex quantum optical protocols could not be realized due to low degree of entanglement, low brightness and broad wavelength distribution. In this work, an emerging family of epitaxially grown GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dots obtained by droplet etching and nanohole infilling is studied. Under pulsed resonant two-photon excitation, they emit single pairs of entangled photons with high purity and unprecedented degree of entanglement. Entanglement fidelities up to f = 0.94 are observed, which are only limited by the optical setup or a residual exciton fine structure. The samples exhibit a very narrow wavelength distribution at rubidium memory transitions. Strain tuning is applied via piezoelectric actuators to allow for reversible fine-tuning of the emission frequency. In a next step, active feedback is employed to stabilize the frequency of single photons emitted by two separate quantum dots to an atomic rubidium standard. The transmission of a rubidium-based Faraday filter serves as the error signal for frequency stabilization. A residual frequency deviation of < 30MHz is achieved, which is less than 1.5% of the quantum dot linewidth. Long-term stability is demonstrated by Hong-Ou-Mandel interference between photons from the two quantum dots. Their internal dephasing limits the expected visibility to V = 40%. For frequency-stabilized dots, V = (41 ± 5)% is observed as opposed to V = (31 ± 7)% for free-running emission. This technique reaches the maximally expected visibility for the given system and therefore facilitates quantum networks with indistinguishable photons from distributed sources. Based on the presented techniques and improved emission quality, pivotal quantum communication protocols can now be implemented with quantum dots, such as transferring entanglement between photon pairs. Embedding quantum dots in a dielectric antenna ensures a bright emission. For the first time, entanglement swapping between two pairs of photons emitted by a single quantum dot is realized. A joint Bell measurement heralds the successful generation of the Bell state Ψ+ with a fidelity of up to (0.81 ± 0.04). The state's nonlocal nature is confirmed by violating the CHSH-Bell inequality with S = (2.28 ± 0.13). The photon source is tuned into resonance with rubidium transitions, facilitating implementation of hybrid quantum repeaters. This work thus represents a major step forward for the application of semiconductor based entangled photon sources in real-world scenarios.

No description available.

<p>This dissertation discusses the theoretical methods for quantum scattering in the context of x-ray scattering from electrons and classical scattering in the context of collisions between Rydberg atoms.</p> <p><br></p> <p>A method for describing non-relativistic x-ray scattering from bound electrons is presented. The approach described incorporates the full spatial dependence of the incident x-ray field and is non-perturbative in the incident x-ray field. The x-ray scattering probability obtained by numerical solution for the case of free-electrons is bench-marked with well known analytical free-electron results.</p> <p><br></p> <p>A recent investigation by Fuchs \emph{et al.} [Nat. Phys. 11, 964 (2015)] revealed an anomalous frequency shift of at least 800 eV in non-linear Compton scattering of high-intensity x-rays by electrons in solid beryllium. The x-ray scattering approach described is used to explore the role of binding energy, band structure, electron-electron correlation and a semi-Compton channel in the frequency shift of scattered x-rays for different scattered angles. The results of the calculation do not exhibit an additional redshift for the scattered x-rays beyond the non-linear Compton shift predicted by the free-electron model. </p> <p><br></p> <p>The interference between Compton scattering and nonlinear Compton scattering from a two-color field in the x-ray regime is theoretically analyzed for bound electrons. A discussion of the underlying phase shifts and the dependence of the interference effect on the polarizations of the incident and outgoing fields are presented. </p> <p><br></p> <p>The problem of using x-ray scattering to image the dynamics of an electron in a bound system is examined. Previous work on imaging electronic wave-packet dynamics with x-ray scattering revealed that the scattering patterns deviate substantially from the notion of instantaneous momentum density of the wave packet. Here we show that the scattering patterns can provide clear insights into the electronic wave packet dynamics if the final state of the scattered electron and the scattered photon momentum are determined simultaneously. The scattering probability is shown to be proportional to the modulus square of the Fourier transform of the instantaneous electronic spatial wave function weighted by the final state of the electron.</p> <p><br></p> <p>Collisional ionization between Rydberg atoms is examined. The dependence of the ionization cross section on the magnitude and the direction of orbital angular momentum of the electrons and the direction of the Laplace-Runge-Lenz vector of the electrons is studied. The case of exchange ionization is examined and its dependence on the magnitude of angular momentum of the electrons is discussed.</p> <p><br></p>

Venus does not have a strong intrinsic magnetic field as the Earth, and its magnetosphere is induced by the interaction of the solar wind with the ionosphere. The near-Venus space environment is characterized by the presence of a bow shock and of an induced magnetic boundary linked to the interplanetary magnetic field orientation. The interaction of the solar wind with the planetary atmosphere and exosphere is more direct than on Earth. This interaction energises ionospheric ions, leading to a loss of atmospheric compounds in space. Ions and energetic neutral atoms of solar wind or of planetary origin can precipitate onto the upper atmosphere of Venus, which is an important process of mass, momentum and energy transfer, and can lead to an increase of the loss of planetary constituents due to the atmospheric sputtering. The energetic neutral atoms are used as a diagnostic method, that gives a continuous and global imaging of the planetary magnetosphere. They are generated by multiple processes, as charge exchange, scattering and sputtering from the upper atmosphere of Venus. In this work, we study the precipitation of oxygen and hydrogen ions and energetic neutrals in the upper atmosphere of Venus. We use data produced with a global hybrid plasma model that simulated the interaction between Venus and the solar wind, and simulate the charge exchange process between the energetic ions and exospheric neutral particles to produce the energetic neutral atoms. Due to the low North-South asymmetry in the precipitation of oxygen planetary ions and energetic neutral atoms, we conclude that the effect of the finite gyroradius of oxygen ions is limited. Compared to the case of Mars, the fraction of the solar wind that precipitates as hydrogen energetic neutral atoms onto Venus is lower, consistently with the less extended exosphere of Venus. / Venus har inte ett starkt internt magnetfält som jorden, och dess magnetosfär induceras av solvindens växelverkan med jonosfären. Rymdmiljön nära Venus kännetecknas av närvaron av en bogchock och av en inducerad magnetisk gräns kopplad till den interplanetära magnetfältsorienteringen, genom en mer direkt växelverkan mellan solvinden och planetens exosfären och atmosfär än på jorden. Denna växelverkan aktiverar jonosfäriska joner, vilket leder till en förlust av atmosfär till rymden. Joner och energiska neutrala atomer i solvind eller av planetärt ursprung kankollidera med den övre atmosfären på Venus. Detta är en viktig typ av överföring av massa, rörelsemängd och energi och kan leda till en ökning av förlusten av planetära beståndsdelar på grund av sputtering. De energiska neutrala atomerna används som en diagnostisk metod, vilket ger en kontinuerlig och global avbildning av Venus magnetosfär. De är genererade av flera processer, som laddningsutbyte, spridning och sputtering från Venus övre atmosfär. I det här arbetet studerar vi precipitering av syre- och vätejoner och energiska neutraler i den övre atmosfären på Venus. Vi använder data som produceras med en global hybridplasmamodell som simulerar växelverkan mellan Venus och solvinden, och laddningsutbytesprocessen mellan de energiska jonerna och exosfäriska neutralpartiklar för att producera energiska neutrala atomer. På grund av den låga nord-sydliga asymmetrin i precipiteringen av planetära syrejoner och energiska neutrala atomer, drar vi slutsatsen att effekten av syrejonernas ändliga gyroradius är begränsad. Vi jämför precipitering väte och energiska neutralpartiklar på Venus med fallet på Mars. / A differenza della Terra, Venere non possiede un campo magnetico intrinseco. L’interazione del vento solare con la ionosfera del pianeta forma quella che è chiamata magnetosfera indotta. Questa struttura presenta un bow shock e un induced magnetic boundary (confine magnetico indotto) ed è fortemente legata all’orientamento del campo magnetico interplanetario. L’interazione tra il vento solare e l’atmosfera di Venere è più diretta in confronto a quanto accade per la Terra. Questa interazione è capace di energizzare ioni della ionosfera oltre alla loro velocità di fuga, portando a una perdita nello spazio di materiale di origine planetaria. Ioni o atomi neutri del vento solare o di origine planetaria possono precipitare nell’atmosfera del pianeta, trasferendo in questo modo energia, quantità di moto e massa dallo spazio a Venere. La precipitazione di ioni e atomi neutri può causare lo sputtering di materiale planetario e causare in questo modo un aumento della perdita di materia dall’atmosfera del pianeta. Gli atomi neutri energetici sono utilizzati come metodo di indagine per la magnetosfera, di cui possono fornire una rappresentazione globale e continua. Gli atomi neutri energetici sono generati da sputtering, backscattering e da processi di trasferimento di carica. In questa tesi è studiata la precipitazione nell’atmosfera di Venere di ioni e di atomi neutri, sia di idrogeno che di ossigeno. Sono utilizzati dati prodotti con un modello ibrido che simula l’interazione tra Venere e il vento solare. Gli atomi neutri energetici sono prodotti modellando il meccanismo di scambio di carica tra gli ioni e l’esosfera neutra di Venere. Si conclude che l’assimmetria calcolata nella precipitazione degli ioni di ossigeno è più bassa di quanto ci si sarebbe aspettato. La precipitazione di atomi neutri di idrogeno nell’atmosfera di Venere è confrontata con il caso di Marte.

No description available.

No description available.