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No description available.

The meshless local Petrov-Galerkin (MLPG) method is used to numerically find an approximate solution of plane strain/stress linear elastostatic and elastodynamic problems. The MLPG method requires only a set of nodes both for the interpolation of the solution variables and the evaluation of various integrals appearing in the problem formulation. The monomial basis functions in the MLPG formulation have been enriched with those for the linear elastic fracture mechanics solutions near a crack tip. Also, the diffraction and the visibility criteria have been added to make the displacement field discontinuous across a crack. A computer code has been developed in Fortran and validated by comparing computed solutions of three static and one dynamic problem with their analytical solutions. The capabilities of the code have been extended to analyze contact problems in which a displacement component and the complementary traction component are prescribed at the same point of the boundary. The code has been used to analyze stress and deformation fields near a crack tip and to find the stress intensity factors by using contour integrals, the equivalent domain integrals and the J-integral and from the intercepts with the ordinate of the plots, on a logarithmic scale, of the stress components versus the distance ahead of the crack tip. We have also computed time histories of the stress intensity factors at the tips of a central crack in a rectangular plate with plate edges parallel to the crack loaded in tension. These are found to compare favorably with those available in the literature. The code has been used to compute time histories of the stress intensity factors in a double edge-notched plate with the smooth edge between the notches loaded in compression. It is found that the deformation fields near the notch tip are mode-II dominant. The mode mixity parameter can be changed in an orthotropic plate by adjusting the ratio of the Young's moduli in the axial and the transverse direction. The plane strain problem of compressing a linear elastic material confined in a rectangular cavity with rough horizontal walls and a smooth vertical wall has been studied with the developed code. Computed displacements and stresses are found to agree well with the analytical solution of the problem obtained by the Laplace transform technique. The Appendix describes the analysis with the finite element code ABAQUS of the dependence of the energy release rate upon the crack length in a polymeric disk enclosed in a steel ring and having a star shaped hole at its center. A starter crack is assumed to exist in one of the leaflets of the hole. The disk is loaded either by a pressure acting on the surfaces of the hole and the crack or by a temperature rise. Computed values of the energy release rate obtained by modeling the disk material as Hookean are found to be about 30% higher than those obtained when the disk material is modeled as Mooney-Rivlin. The latter set of results accounts for both material and geometric nonlinearities. / Ph. D.

The Coulomb propulsion system has no exhaust plume impingement problem with neighboring spacecraft and does not contaminate their sensors because it requires essentially no propellant. It is suitable to close formation control on the order of dozens of meters. The Coulomb forces are internal forces of the formation and they influence all charged spacecraft at the same time. Highly nonlinear and strongly coupled equations of motion of Coulomb formation makes creating a Coulomb control method a challenging task. Instead of positioning all spacecraft, this study investigates having a sensor craft be sequentially controlled using dedicated drone craft. At least three drone craft are required to control a general sensor craft position in the inertial space. However, the singularity of a drone plane occurs when a sensor craft moves across the drone plane. A bang-bang control method with a singularity check can avoid this problem but may lose formation control as the relative distances grow bounded. A bang-coast-bang control method utilizing a reference trajectory profile and drone rest control is introduced to increase the control effectiveness. The spacecraft are assumed to be floating freely in inertial space, an approximation of environments found while underway to other solar system bodies. Numerical simulation results show the feasibility of sensor craft control using Coulomb forces. / Master of Science

Semiconductor–superconductor hybrid systems are promising candidates for the realization of Majorana fermions and topological order, i.e. topologically protected degeneracies, in solid state devices. We show that the topological order is mirrored in the excitation spectra and can be observed in nonlinear Coulomb blockade transport through a ring-shaped nanowire. Especially, the excitation spectrum is almost independent of magnetic flux in the topologically trivial phase but acquires a characteristic h/e magnetic flux periodicity in the non-trivial phase. The transition between the trivial and nontrivial phase is reflected in the closing and reopening of an excitation gap. We show that the signatures of topological order are robust against details of the geometry, electrostatic disorder and the existence of additional subbands and only rely on the topology of the nanowire and the existence of a superconducting gap. Finally, we show that the coherence length in the non-trivial phase is much longer than in the trivial phase. This opens the possibility to coat the nanowire with superconducting nanograins and thereby significantly reduce the current due to cotunnelling of Cooper pairs and to enhance the Coulomb charging energy without destroying the superconducting gap.

Traditional methods for calculating lateral pressures in silos, such as Janssen's Method and Coulomb's Method, have limitations due to the underlying assumptions of each methodology. This research investigates an approach which adapts Coulomb's Method to account for the cylindrical geometry of silos. The Silo Wedge Method (SWM) distinguishes between two cases based on the aspect ratio (height/diameter) of the silo. Comparative analysis reveals that the SWM accurately matches Coulomb's Method for linear retaining walls when the silo aspect ratio approaches zero. As the aspect ratio increases above 0.25, the SWM exhibits behavior similar to Janssen's Method. This suggests a potential connection between these two classical methods across different silo geometries. The SWM consistently predicts lower lateral pressures when compared to established methods, primarily due to volumetric differences between the silo failure wedge and linear failure wedge assumptions. Key factors influencing these lower predictions, including potential earth pressure states, lateral pressure coefficients, and silo wall deformations, are suggested for further investigation. If validated through physical testing and advanced numerical modeling, the SWM could enable more accurate lateral pressure predictions, leading to material savings, cost reductions, and a lower carbon footprint in silo design and construction, while maintaining structural safety. This research contributes to a comprehensive understanding of lateral pressure calculations across different silo geometries and retaining structures.

On s'intéresse à la résolution numérique de problèmes de contact et de fissuration en dynamique. Le problème de contact envisagé est le problème de Signorini avec ou sans frottement de Coulomb. Quant au problème de fissuration, il s'agit d'un modèle de zone cohésive avec trajet de fissuration pré-défini. Ces problèmes se caractérisent par la présence d'une condition aux limites non-régulière et se formulent comme des inéquations variationnelles d'évolution ou des inclusions différentielles. Pour les résoudre numériquement, nous combinons, comme il est courant en dynamique des solides, une discrétisation en espace par éléments finis et des schémas d'intégration en temps (de types différences finies). Pour le problème de contact, nous commençons par comparer les principales méthodes proposées dans la littérature. Nous étudions ensuite plus particulièrement la méthode dite de masse modifiée récemment introduite par H. Khenous, P. Laborde et Y. Renard. Nous en proposons une variante semi-explicite. Par ailleurs, nous prouvons un résultat de convergence des solutions semi-discrètes en espace vers une solution continue dans le cas d'un problème de Signorini sans frottement et d'un matériau viscoélastique. Nous analysons également les methodes semi-discrètes en espace et totalement discrètes dans le cas d'un problème de Signorini avec frottement de Coulomb. Pour le problème de fissuration dynamique, la non-régularité de la condition aux limites rend impossible ou peu robuste l'utilisation de schémas totalement explicites. Nous proposons donc des schémas où cette condition aux limites est traitée de façon implicite. Enfin, nous présentons et analysons des méthodes de lagrangien augmenté pour la résolution numérique du problème de fissuration en statique / The present work deals with the numerical solution of dynamic contact and fracture problems. The contact problem is a Signorini problem with or without Coulomb friction. The fracture problem uses a cohesive zone model with a prescribed crack path. These problems are characterized by a non-regular boundary condition and can be formulated with evolutionary variational inequations or differential inclusions. For the numerical solution, we combine, as usual in solid dynamics, a finite element discretization in space and time-integration schemes. For the contact problem, we begin by comparing the main methods proposed in the literature. We then focus on the so-called modified mass method recently introduced by H. Khenous, P. Laborde et Y. Renard, for which we propose a semi-explicit variant. In addition, we prove a convergence result of the space semi-discrete solutions to a continuous solution in the frictionless viscoelastic case. We also analyze the space semi-discrete and fully discrete problems in the friction Coulomb case. For the dynamic fracture problem, using a fully explicit scheme is impossible or not robust enough. Therefore, we propose time-integration schemes where the boundary condition is treated in an implicit way. Finally, we present and analyze augmented Lagrangian methods for static fracture problems

Exploiter des effets dépendants du temps pour induire et contrôler des courants à travers des conducteurs mésoscopiques et nanoscopiques est un enjeu majeur dans le domaine du transport quantique. Dans cette thèse, nous considérons deux systèmes de taille nanométrique pour lesquels un courant est induit grâce au couplage entre champs extérieurs dépendants du temps et le transport d'électrons. Nous étudions d'abord un problème de pompage quantique au sein d'un système à trois sites en configuration d'anneau, en considérant la possibilité d'induire un courant continu par modulation temporelle des paramètres de contrôle. Nous nous intéressons en particulier à la transition entre régime adiabatique et antiadiabatique en présence d'un mécanisme de dissipation modélisé par un couplage entre le système et un bain extérieur.Nous montrons que le modèle dissipatif admet une solution analytique complète valable pour la composante DC du courant à fréquence arbitraire. Ceci nous permet de bien comprendre comment le courant induit dépend de la fréquence de pompage. Nous nous concentrons ensuite sur un autre système de contrôle du courant exploitant le phénomène des oscillations tunnel à un électron (SETOs). Contrairement au cas précédent, ici la circulation d'un courant continu à travers un circuit comportant une jonction tunnel produit, pour le régime approprié, un courant quasi-périodique d'électrons. On étudie le spectre de bruit à température nulle d'une jonction tunnel dans différents environnements résistifs dans le but de déterminer les limites du régime des SETOs et de quantifier leur degré de périodicité. Nous généralisons par la suite les résultats à température finie et discutons des effets des fluctuations quantiques. / Exploiting time-dependent effects to induce and control currents through mesoscopic and nano\-scopic conductors is a major challenge in the field of quantum transport. In this dissertation we consider two nanoscale systems in which a current can be induced through intriguing mechanisms of coupling between excitations by external fields and electron transport.We first study a quantum pumping problem, analyzing the possibility to induce a DC response to an AC parametric driving through a three-site system in a ring configuration. We are interested in particular in the crossover between adiabatic and antiadiabatic driving regimes and in the presence of dissipation, which is accounted for by coupling with an external bath. We show that for a clever choice of this coupling the dissipative model admits a full analytical solution for the steady state current valid at arbitrary frequency, which allows us to fully understand the pumping-frequency dependence of the induced current. We then focus on a different current-controlling scheme exploiting the phenomenon of single-electron tunneling oscillations (SETOs). In this case, opposite to what happens for pumping, an AC effect, an almost periodic current of single electrons, arises through a tunnel junction circuit as a consequence of a DC bias. We study the zero-temperature noise spectrum of a tunnel junction in different resistive environments with the aim to determine the boundaries of the SETOs regime and quantify their quality in terms of periodicity. We then discuss the finite-temperature generalization and the possibility to account for the effects of quantum fluctuations.