Diffractive optical elements (DOEs) serve an important function in many dynamic and static optical systems. The theory and design of surface diffractive structures are well understood and practically applied at high spatial and phase resolution for a wide range of optical applications in science and industry. However, these structures normally only harness phase modulation of uniform fields for the beam diffraction and therefore limit their range of application, as well as being susceptible to surface damage. Multilayered volume diffractive elements offer a powerful opportunity to harness both phase and amplitude modulation for benefits in diffraction efficiency and beam shaping. However, multilayered combinations have been difficult to fabricate and provide only weak diffraction for phase gratings with low refractive index contrast. The advent of femtosecond laser writing inside transparent media has enabled the facile embedding of optical devices such as waveguides and diffractive optics into novel three-dimensional geometries that offer advanced functionality with compact design. In this work, femtosecond laser writing is pushed to the limits of forming high resolution phase elements with sufficiently strong refractive index contrast on which to develop volume phase gratings with the highest diffractive efficiency. The formation of both positive and negative zones of refractive index contrast together with rapid Talbot self imaging inside weakly contrasting phase gratings are major challenges here diminish the efficiency of assembled gratings. A method of strategic layering of otherwise weakly diffracting gratings onto Talbot planes is introduced to demonstrate, in FDTD models, the definitive enhancement of overall diffraction efficiency. A systematic optimization of laser writing in fused silica verify this enhancement or diminishment with weak volume gratings assembled on aligned or misaligned on Talbot planes. Advanced laser beam control methods were further demonstrated that underpin new direction for the facile assembly of highly functional DOEs that can exploit coherent light diffraction for opportunities in improving the performance of holographic devices and extend further to the powerful combination of phase and amplitude modulation control that is potentially available in a single optical device, thereby opening new directions for the design and fabrication of robust and strongly diffracting volume optical devices.

Diffractive optical elements (DOEs) serve an important function in many dynamic and static optical systems. The theory and design of surface diffractive structures are well understood and practically applied at high spatial and phase resolution for a wide range of optical applications in science and industry. However, these structures normally only harness phase modulation of uniform fields for the beam diffraction and therefore limit their range of application, as well as being susceptible to surface damage. Multilayered volume diffractive elements offer a powerful opportunity to harness both phase and amplitude modulation for benefits in diffraction efficiency and beam shaping. However, multilayered combinations have been difficult to fabricate and provide only weak diffraction for phase gratings with low refractive index contrast. The advent of femtosecond laser writing inside transparent media has enabled the facile embedding of optical devices such as waveguides and diffractive optics into novel three-dimensional geometries that offer advanced functionality with compact design. In this work, femtosecond laser writing is pushed to the limits of forming high resolution phase elements with sufficiently strong refractive index contrast on which to develop volume phase gratings with the highest diffractive efficiency. The formation of both positive and negative zones of refractive index contrast together with rapid Talbot self imaging inside weakly contrasting phase gratings are major challenges here diminish the efficiency of assembled gratings. A method of strategic layering of otherwise weakly diffracting gratings onto Talbot planes is introduced to demonstrate, in FDTD models, the definitive enhancement of overall diffraction efficiency. A systematic optimization of laser writing in fused silica verify this enhancement or diminishment with weak volume gratings assembled on aligned or misaligned on Talbot planes. Advanced laser beam control methods were further demonstrated that underpin new direction for the facile assembly of highly functional DOEs that can exploit coherent light diffraction for opportunities in improving the performance of holographic devices and extend further to the powerful combination of phase and amplitude modulation control that is potentially available in a single optical device, thereby opening new directions for the design and fabrication of robust and strongly diffracting volume optical devices.

Diffraktive Mikrospiegelarrays sind eine seit Jahren etablierte innovative Lösung zur ortsaufgelösten Beleuchtungsmodulation im UV-Spektralbereich. Sie werden hauptsächlich als Schlüsselbauelement in mikrolithografischen Industrieanlagen eingesetzt. Gegenwärtige Untersuchungen befassen sich mit der Erweiterung der Technologie hin zu multispektralen Anwendungen, beispielsweise in der Mikroskopie zur strukturierten Objektausleuchtung. Aufgrund des diffraktiven Arbeitsprinzips mit Phasenmodulationen im Nanometerbereich sowie der Vielzahl von Einzelspiegeln mit individuellem Auslenkverhalten stellt die präzise Ansteuerung der Bauelemente eine wesentliche Herausforderung dar. In diesem Kontext steht die Entwicklung und Validierung eines Verfahrens im Fokus dieser Arbeit, das die Gesamtheit von mehreren Tausend oder auch Millionen Mikrospiegeln abhängig von gewünschtem Beleuchtungsmuster und -wellenlänge auf korrekte Kippwinkel einstellen kann. Der gewählte Ansatz liegt in einem Mess- und Korrekturverfahren aller Einzelspiegelverkippungen. Die als Kalibrierung bezeichnete Methode nutzt ein Weißlichtinterferometer zur profilometrischen Charakterisierung der elektro-mechanischen Übertragungsfunktionen der Aktuatoren, wodurch erstmalig auf diesem Themengebiet der multispektrale Bauelementeinsatz gewährleistet werden kann. Zentrales Ergebnis der Kalibrierroutine ist eine Reduzierung der Streuung der Spiegelverkippungen um einen Faktor größer fünf. Direkte Folge sind erheblich verbesserte optische Projektionsmuster, aufgenommen an einem parallel entwickelten optischen Lasermessplatz mit spektral verschiedenen Quellen. Nachgewiesen wurden im Vergleich zum unkalibrierten Ausgangszustand Kontrastverdoppelungen, Homogenitätssteigerungen und die Sicherstellung der Abbildung von mindestens 64 Graustufen. Die Ergebnisse dokumentieren einerseits die Leistungsfähigkeit von diffraktiven Mikrospiegelarrays in multispektralen Umgebungen mit sehr guten Abbildungseigenschaften. Gleichzeitig konnte die wesentliche Grundlage für einen deutlich erweiterten Einsatz optischer Mikrosysteme im stark wachsenden Anwendungsbereich der diffraktiven Optik bzw. der Ultrapräzisionsoptik geschaffen werden.

This thesis summarizes the present status of the nanofabrication of diffractive optics, i.e. zone plates, and test objects for soft x-ray microscopy at KTH. The emphasis is on new and improved fabrication processes for nickel and germanium zone plates. A new concept in which nickel and germanium are combined in a zone plate is also presented. The main techniques used in the fabrication are electron beam lithography for the patterning, followed by plasma etching and electroplating for the structuring of the optical materials. The process for fabricating nickel zone plates has been significantly improved. The reproducibility of the electroplating step has been increased by the implementation of an in-situ rate measurement and an end-point detection method. We have also shown that pulse plating can be used to obtain zone plates with a uniform height profile. New plating mold materials have been introduced and electron-beam curing of the molds has been investigated and implemented to increase their mechanical stability so that pattern collapse in the electroplating step can be avoided. The introduction of cold development has improved the achievable resolution of the process. This has enabled the fabrication of zone plates with outermost zone widths down to 16 nm. The nickel process has also recently been adapted to fabrication of gold structures intended for test objects and hard x-ray zone plates. For the fabrication of germanium zone plates we developed a highly anisotropic plasma-etch process using Cl2 feed and sidewall passivation. Germanium zone plates have been fabricated with zone widths down to 30 nm. The diffraction efficiency is comparable to that of nickel zone plates, but the process does not involve electroplating and thus has for potential for highyield fabrication. The combination of nickel and germanium is a new fabrication concept that provides a means to achieve high diffraction efficiency even for thin nickel. The idea is to fabricate a nickel zone plate on a germanium film. The nickel zone plate itself is then used as etch mask for a highly selective CHF3- plasma etch into the germanium layer. Proof of principle experiments showed an efficiency increase of about a factor of two for nickel zone plates with a 50- nm nickel thickness. / QC 20100728

Title: Study of diffractive processes at the ATLAS Experiment Author: Vlastimil Kůs Department: Institute of Particle and Nuclear Physics Supervisor: Mgr. Marek Taševský, Ph.D. Institute of Physics of the Academy of Sciences of the CR, v.v.i. Abstract: A data sample of pp collisions corresponding to an integrated lumi- nosity of 6.75 nb−1 was collected at √ s = 7 TeV using the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Collision events with at least two jets with pT > 20 GeV are used to measure the differential cross section of the diffractive dijet production as a function of the rapidity gap size ∆ηF , the largest forward region extending from |η| = 4.8 devoid of particle activity above threshold momentum cuts, and an estimator of the fractional momentum loss of the scattered proton assuming the single diffractive dissociation (pp → pX), ˜ξ± . Comparisons with various Monte Carlo models reveal that though the region of small ˜ξ± and large rapidity gaps is dominated by diffraction, a contribution form non-diffractive events cannot be neglected. The rapidity gap survival probability is estimated based on data to Monte Carlo comparisons in the −3.2 < log10 ˜ξ± < −2.5 region of the ˜ξ± distri- bution with the ∆ηF > 2 requirement. 1

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / Apresentamos a primeira medida para a fração de eventos de Dupla Troca de Pomeron (DPE) em produção de dijatos centrais realizada no experimento DØ, no Fermilab. A seleção de eventos do tipo DPE foi possível através de um estudo sobre o comportamento da energia depositada nas células do calorímetro hadrônico, procurando por dois intervalos de rapidez - uma das assinaturas do evento DPE. / This thesis presents the first DØ measurement of the fraction of Double Pomeron Exchange (DPE) in a central dijet production. An extensive study on the behavior of the energy deposited on the hadronic calorimeter cell was performed. In the search for DPE events the goal was to find gap (or low activity) in two forward calorimeter regions, which is a signature of Double Pomeron Exchange events.

abstract: The superior brightness and ultra short pulse duration of X-ray free electron laser (XFEL) allows it to outrun radiation damage in coherent diffractive imaging since elastic scattering terminates before photoelectron cascades commences. This “diffract-before-destroy” feature of XFEL opened up new opportunities for biological macromolecule imaging and structure studies by breaking the limit to spatial resolution imposed by the maximum dose that is allowed before radiation damage. However, data collection in serial femto-second crystallography (SFX) using XFEL is affected by a bunch of stochastic factors, which pose great challenges to the data analysis in SFX. These stochastic factors include crystal size, shape, random orientation, X-ray photon flux, position and energy spectrum. Monte-Carlo integration proves effective and successful in extracting the structure factors by merging all diffraction patterns given that the data set is sufficiently large to average out all stochastic factors. However, this approach typically requires hundreds of thousands of patterns collected from experiments. This dissertation explores both experimental and algorithmic methods to eliminate or reduce the effect of stochastic factors in data acquisition and analysis. Coherent convergent X-ray beam diffraction (CCB) is discussed for possibilities of obtaining single-shot angular-integrated rocking curves. It is also shown the interference between Bragg disks helps ab-initio phasing. Two-color diffraction scheme is proposed for time-resolved studies and general data collection strategies are discussed based on error metrics. A new auto-indexing algorithm for sparse patterns is developed and demonstrated for both simulated and experimental data. Statistics show that indexing rate is increased by 3 times for I3C data set collected from beam time LJ69 at Linac coherent light source (LCLS). Finally, dynamical inversion from electron diffraction is explored as an alternative approach for structure determination. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Physics 2016

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / Apresentamos a primeira medida para a fração de eventos de Dupla Troca de Pomeron (DPE) em produção de dijatos centrais realizada no experimento DØ, no Fermilab. A seleção de eventos do tipo DPE foi possível através de um estudo sobre o comportamento da energia depositada nas células do calorímetro hadrônico, procurando por dois intervalos de rapidez - uma das assinaturas do evento DPE. / This thesis presents the first DØ measurement of the fraction of Double Pomeron Exchange (DPE) in a central dijet production. An extensive study on the behavior of the energy deposited on the hadronic calorimeter cell was performed. In the search for DPE events the goal was to find gap (or low activity) in two forward calorimeter regions, which is a signature of Double Pomeron Exchange events.

Neste trabalho, é proposto um esquema de cifragem e decifragem baseado em uma nova técnica de contraste de fase. Esta nova técnica, denominada \"técnica de contraste de fase de ordem zero\", transforma a modulação de fase para intensidade sem a necessidade de uma placa de alteração de fase (dot dielétrico de fase) no plano de Fourier de um correlator óptico 4f. Um processo de codificação, que não utiliza qualquer cálculo iterativo, é aplicado diretamente em uma imagem em níveis de cinza para gerar uma distribuição de fase. Em seguida, um processo de cifragem é realizado através da multiplicação da distribuição de fase por uma distribuição de fase aleatória. A vantagem deste método é o fácil esquema para recuperar a informação em níveis de cinza a partir da máscara de fase decifrada. A máscara de fase cifrada e a chave do sistema foram implementadas em SLMs (Spatial Light Modulators) do tipo LCTV (Liquid Crystal TV). As formas de codificação da imagem em níveis de cinza para gerar as máscaras de fase também foram investigadas. Como resultado, foram implementados dois tipos de EODs (Elementos Ópticos Difrativos) de fase. Um deles funciona no modo de transmissão, o outro, no modo de reflexão. Resultados experimentais mostram a aplicação da técnica de contraste de fase de ordem zero na visualização da informação codificada, tanto em SLM quanto em EODs de fase, e na verificação de padrões cifrados. / In this work, an encryption and decryption scheme based on a new phase contrast technique is proposed. This new technique, called the zero order phase contrast technique, transforma the phase modulation to intensity without the necessity of a phase-changing plate (phase dielectric dot) on the Fourier plane of a 4f optical correlator. A codification process, which does not use any iterative calculation, is applied directly in a gray level image to generate a phase distribution. After this, an encryption process is applied multiplying the phase distribution by a random phase distribution. The advantage of this method is the easy scheme to recover the gray level information from the decryption phase mask. The encrypted phase mask and the key of the system were implemented on Spatial Light Modulators of the kind LCTV. The encoding ways were investigated to generate the phase masks from gray level image, by implementing two kinds of phase Diffractive Optical Elements, operating in transmission and reflection modes. Experimental results show the successfully application of the zero order phase contrast technique in the visualization of encoded information both in Spatial Light Modulators and in phase only Diffractive Optical Elements as well as in the verification of encrypted patterns.

Neste texto nós discutimos o fluxo de energia em reações hadrônicas e em fotoprodução. Apresentamos um modelo de produção de partículas com o qual é fácil estudar a deposição de energia na região central e o efeito de partícula dominante. Analisamos dados de produção de partículas carregadas e charrnosas em várias energias. Discutimos o papel individual das interações soft e semi-hard. Fazemos, entre outras, a previsão de que a energia mais altas, uma fração maior da energia das colisões será depositada na região central e, como consequência, a assimetria observada na produção de charme vai diminuir. Estudamos e propomos um teste experimental para a produção de mesons pesados a partir da fragmentação de quarks leves. / We present and apply to several situations a model for particle production. With this model it is possible to understand the energy flow in hadronic reactíons, in photoproduction and also ma.ke predictions for the behaviour of some observables at higher energies. It is also possible to study the individual contributions of soft and semíhard interactions and the individual contributions coming from the central and fragmentation regions. We analyse charged and charmed particle production data at several energies. We predíct, among other things, that an increasing fraction of the reaction energy is going to be released in the central region. As a consequence the asymmetry observed in charm production will decrease. We study and propose as experimental test to heavy meson production from light quark fragmentation.