We present Gemini Planet Imager polarized intensity imagery of HD 100453 in Y, J, and K1 bands that reveals an inner gap (9-18 au), an outer disk (18-39 au) with two prominent spiral arms, and two azimuthally localized dark features that are also present in Spectro-Polarimetric High-contrast Exoplanet REsearch (SPHERE) total intensity images. Spectral energy distribution fitting further suggests that the radial gap extends to 1 au. The narrow, wedge-like shape of the dark features appears similar to predictions of shadows cast by an inner disk that is misaligned with respect to the outer disk. Using the Monte Carlo radiative transfer code HOCHUNCK3D, we construct a model of the disk that allows us to determine its physical properties in more detail. From the angular separation of the features, we measure the difference in inclination between the disks (45 degrees) and their major axes, PA = 140 degrees east of north for the outer disk, and 100 degrees for the inner disk. We find an outer-disk inclination of 25 degrees +/- 10 degrees from face-on, in broad agreement with the Wagner et al. measurement of 34 degrees. SPHERE data in J and H bands indicate a reddish disk, which indicates that HD 100453 is evolving into a young debris disk.

We present a spectral analysis of the spectrum from the Hubble Space Telescope Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (HST/COS) of the southern VY Scl nova-like variable BB Doradus, obtained as part of a Cycle 20 HST/COS survey of accreting white dwarfs (WDs) in cataclysmic variables. BB Dor was observed with COS during an intermediate state with a low mass accretion rate, thereby allowing an estimate of the WD temperature. The results of our spectral analysis show that the WD is a significant far-ultraviolet (FUV) component of the spectrum with a temperature of about 35,000-50,000 K, assuming a WD mass of 0.80 M-circle dot (log(g) = 8.4). The disk, with a mass accretion rate of approximate to 10(-10) M-circle dot yr(-1), contributes about 1/5 to 1/2 of the FUV flux.

M.A. / CD-ROM products provide access to information by means of different modes of interaction, often on the same database. Although command language is still widely recognized as the interaction mode which retrieves the most relevant references, it is regarded as difficult to use because of its complex structure. More user friendly modes, for example, menu and direct manipulation are viewed as being more accessible to the up-and-coming end-user. The purpose of this study was to determine by means of an empirical study whether the retrieval effectiveness between two modes of interaction on the same database differed significantly. A literature survey pointed out the unique characteristics of existing modes. It was also established that the traditional measures of retrieval effectiveness through relevance and precision could not be applied in this research. A method was devised in which the results of the two modes were compared. The empirical study was done on the command and form fill-in modes of Wilson Business Abstracts. Total results retrieved through each mode were compared, as well as the ease of entering the search by means of appropriate search facilities for each mode. The results of the research revealed that the presence of unique search facilities in a mode results in better retrieval effectiveness. Searches in both modes also require specific ways of input for optimum quality retrieval and thus has implications for intensive training in search methods.

Nesta dissertação discutimos o processo da acreção de materia sobre objetos compactos em suas diferentes abordagens. Iniciando com o caso clássico, estudamos sua contraparte relativística e, por fim, investigamos a acreção de fluidos cosmológicos (energia escura e matéria escura) em buracos negros. Devido a simetria esférica adotada, a formação dos chamados discos de acréscimo é proibida (tanto no caso clássico quanto no relativístico) e, portanto, os problemas relacionados com a física dos discos (sua formação e evolução) não foram investigados. No contexto clássico, analisamos inicialmente a chamada acreçao de Bondi, onde o fluido acretado obedece a uma equação de estado politropica e o processo de acreção é descrito pela hidrodinâmica euleriana. A existância de 6 tipos possíveis de solucões para o campo de velocidades é identicada e suas consequências fsicas são discutidas em detalhe. Apenas uma dessas soluções descreve de forma fisicamente consistente o processo de acreção. A taxa de materia acretada é constante, um resultado esperado devido a hipotese de regime estacionário. O estudo do caso relativstico é completamente baseado na Teoria da Relatividade Geral, com o campo gravitacional do corpo central sendo descrito pela metrica de Schwarzschild. O processo relativstico também ocorre sob condições estacionárias e, portanto, a taxa de acreção resultante também é constante. Uma atenção especial foi dedicada para a acreção de fluidos cosmologicos satisfazendo uma equação de estado linear e tambem para o chamado gás de Chaplygin. Estudamos separadamente o comportamento espacial do fluido na região dominada pela acreção e também a influência da evolução cosmologica nas regiões mais distantes. Mostramos que a massa do buraco negro central pode apresentar uma evolução no tempo em escala cosmológica. Os resultados de Babichev (caso linear) e o gás de Chaplygin foram unicadamente descritos através de uma equacão de estado generalizada. Por fim, determinamos também sob que condições a acreção de matéria pode provocar mudancas significativas na massa do buraco negro. / In this dissertation the matter accretion process upon compact objects is discussed in its diferent approaches. Starting with the classical case, the relativistic type was studied and, in the end, the accretion of cosmological fluids (dark energy and dark matter) onto a black hole is investigated. Due to spherical symmetry adopted, the formation of accretion disks is forbidden (both in the classical and relativistic case) and, thus, the problems related to disk physics (the formation and evolution) were not investigated. On the classical approach, the so called Bondi accretion is examined, in which the matter flux occurs according to a polytropic equation of state and the accretion itself is described by the Eulerian hydrodynamic. The existence of 6 possible families of solutions for the velocity field is identied and its physical consequences are thoroughly discussed. Only one of these solutions describes the accretion process in a physically consistent manner. The mass accretion rate is found to be constant, as expected duo to the steady-state hypothesis. The relativistic approach is completely based on the General Relativity Theory. In this case, the gravitational field of the central body is described by the Schwarzschild metric. The relativistic process also occurs in steady-state conditions and, therefore, the accretion flux also is constant. A particular interest is given to the accretion of cosmological fluids with a linear equation of state and of Chaplygin gas. Both the spacial behaviour of the fluids in the accretion dominated region and their cosmological evolution in farther regions are looked into individually. The mass of the central black hole\'s evolution is shown to occur in cosmological times. The Babichev (linear equation of state) and Chaplygin results were unied through a generalised equation of state. At last, it is also determined under which conditions the accretion of cosmological fluids can have astonishing effects on the black hole\'s mass.

Estrelas Be são reconhecidas pela sua rápida rotação e pulsação não radial. São as únicas estrelas da Sequência Principal que apresentam discos circunstelares, os quais são formados por meio de processos ainda não completamente compreendidos. A modelagem das forças que atuam neste sistema conduz a previsões teóricas sobre a estrutura do disco que podem ser comparadas com dados observacionais. Podemos estudar as propriedades físicas dos discos de estrelas Be pelo efeito que a luz estelar sofre ao passar por eles, por exemplo, modelando a transferência radiativa. Neste ponto, a polarização surge como uma ferramenta muito útil para a investigação destes discos, permitindo a determinação de quantidades físicas importantes do sistema, como a densidade numérica de partículas e o ângulo de inclinação. Uma variabilidade intrigante observada em estrelas Be é a transição aperiódica entre uma fase B normal (sem disco) e uma fase Be (com disco). Estudos de monitoramento recentes encontraram, a partir da análise da polarização intrínseca decorrente da transição entre estas fases, uma relação significante entre a mudança da polarização através do salto de Balmer versus a polarização na banda V, fazendo surgir uma estrutura em loop como função do tempo, no assim denominado Diagrama Cor-Polarização. Neste trabalho, apresentamos uma análise do Diagrama Cor-Polarização por meio de modelos diversos. Fazemos uso do Disco de Decréscimo Viscoso que é o paradigma atual para explicar a formação e evolução dos discos de estrelas Be. Com isso, visamos determinar como a polarimetria pode contribuir para a compreensão dos mecanismos fundamentais envolvidos no processo de formação e dissipação do disco. / Be stars are recognized by their rapid rotation and non-radial pulsation. They are the only stars in the Main Sequence that have circumstellar disks that are formed by processes not yet fully understood. The modeling of the forces acting on this system leads to theoretical predictions about the structure of the disk that can be compared to observational data. We can study physical the properties of Be disks by modeling how stellar light is reprocessed by them. This requires solving the detailed radiative transfer problem involved. In this point, the study of polarization arise as a useful tool to investigate these disks, allowing for the determination of important physical quantities of the system, such as the particle number density and inclination angle. An intriguing variability observed in Be stars is the aperiodic transition between a B normal phase (without disk) to a Be phase (with disk). Recent monitoring studies found, from the analysis of the intrinsic polarization arising of the transition between these phases, a significant relation between the polarization change through the Balmer jump versus the V-Band polarization, giving rise to a loop structure as a function of time, in the so-called Color-Polarization Diagram. This work presents an analysis of the Color-Polarization Diagram by several models. We make use of the Viscous Decretion Disk Model, which assumes the existence of some injection mechanism of material at keplerian velocities in the disk base, where the turbulent viscosity acts carrying angular momentum from de inner parts to the outer regions. With this, we aimed to extend our knowledge about the fundamental mechanisms involved in the formation and dissipation processes of the disk.

La formation des planètes a lieu dans les disques protoplanétaires constitués de gaz et de poussières. Si ces dernières ne représentent que 1% de la masse totale du disque, elles jouent un rôle fondamental pour l’évolution chimique des disques en agissant comme catalyseurs pour la formation des molécules. Comprendre cette chimie est essentiel pour remonter aux conditions physiques initiales qui ont permis la naissance des planètes.Au cours de ma thèse, j’ai étudié la chimie à la surface des grains de poussières et son impact sur l’évolution chimique du nuage moléculaire, condition initale de la formation du disque, et du disque protoplanétaire. Grâce à des simulations numériques, à l’aide du code de chimie gaz-grain Nautilus, j’ai pu montrer l’importance des réactions de diffusion et des interactions gaz-grain pour les abondances des espèces en phase gazeuse. Les résultats du modèle couplés aux observations ont également mis en évidence les effets de la structure physique (température, densité, AV) sur la distribution des molécules dans les disques. / Planetary formation occurs in the protoplanetary disks of gas and dust. Although dust represents only 1% of the total disk mass, it plays a fundamental role in disk chemical evolution since it acts as a catalyst for the formation of molecules. Understanding this chemistry is therefore essential to determine the initial conditions from which planets form.During my thesis, I studied grain-surface chemistry and its impact on the chemical evolution of molecular cloud, initial condition for disk formation, and protoplanetary disk. Thanks to numerical simulations, using the gas-grain code Nautilus, I showed the importance of diffusion reactions and gas-grain interactions for the abundances of gas-phase species. Model results combined with observations also showed the effects of the physical structure (in temperature, density, AV) on the molecular distribution in disks.

This work explores remote sensing of planetary atmospheres and their circumstellar surroundings. The terrestrial ionosphere is a highly variable space plasma embedded in the thermosphere. Generated by solar radiation and predominantly composed of oxygen ions at high altitudes, the ionosphere is dynamically and chemically coupled to the neutral atmosphere. Variations in ionospheric plasma density impact radio astronomy and communications. Inverting observations of 83.4 nm photons resonantly scattered by singly ionized oxygen holds promise for remotely sensing the ionospheric plasma density. This hypothesis was tested by comparing 83.4 nm limb profiles recorded by the Remote Atmospheric and Ionospheric Detection System aboard the International Space Station to a forward model driven by coincident plasma densities measured independently via ground-based incoherent scatter radar. A comparison study of two separate radar overflights with different limb profile morphologies found agreement between the forward model and measured limb profiles. A new implementation of Chapman parameter retrieval via Markov chain Monte Carlo techniques quantifies the precision of the plasma densities inferred from 83.4 nm emission profiles. This first study demonstrates the utility of 83.4 nm emission for ionospheric remote sensing. Future visible and ultraviolet spectroscopy will characterize the composition of exoplanet atmospheres; therefore, the second study advances technologies for the direct imaging and spectroscopy of exoplanets. Such spectroscopy requires the development of new technologies to separate relatively dim exoplanet light from parent star light. High-contrast observations at short wavelengths require spaceborne telescopes to circumvent atmospheric aberrations. The Planet Imaging Concept Testbed Using a Rocket Experiment (PICTURE) team designed a suborbital sounding rocket payload to demonstrate visible light high-contrast imaging with a visible nulling coronagraph. Laboratory operations of the PICTURE coronagraph achieved the high-contrast imaging sensitivity necessary to test for the predicted warm circumstellar belt around Epsilon Eridani. Interferometric wavefront measurements of calibration target Beta Orionis recorded during the second test flight in November 2015 demonstrate the first active wavefront sensing with a piezoelectric mirror stage and activation of a micromachine deformable mirror in space. These two studies advance our ``close-to-home'' knowledge of atmospheres and move exoplanetary studies closer to detailed measurements of atmospheres outside our solar system.

This thesis presents a study of the sub-light year regions of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN). These environments contain accretion discs that orbit a central super-massive black hole. The luminosity of the AGN inner regions varies over time across all wavelengths with variability at longer wavelengths lagging behind that at shorter wavelengths. Since the AGN themselves are too remote and too compact to resolve directly, I exploit these time lags to infer the physical characteristics of the accretion disc and surrounding gas clouds that emit broad emission lines. These characteristics include the inclination and temperature profile of the accretion disc, and the shape (or light curve) of the luminosity fluctuations that drive the accretion disc variability. This thesis details the work in the first author papers of Starkey et al. (2016, 2017), in which I detail the statistical code, CREAM (Continuum REverberting AGN Markov Chain Monte Carlo), that I developed to analyse AGN accretion disc variability. I apply the code to a set of AGN light curve observations of the Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 5548 by the AGN STORM collaboration (De Rosa et al., 2015; Edelson et al., 2015; Fausnaugh et al., 2016a; Goad et al., 2016; Starkey et al., 2017). I also present work detailing my variability analysis of the Seyfert galaxies NGC 6814, NGC 2617, MCG 08-11-11 and NGC 4151. This work has contributed to the analysis presented in (Troyer et al. 2016, Fausnaugh et al. submitted). I also investigate the implications of a twin accretion disc structure (Nealon et al., 2015) on the disc time lag measurements across near UV and optical wavelengths. I finish by detailing a modification to CREAM that allows it to merge continuum light curves observed in a common filter, but taken by multiple telescopes with different calibration and instrumental effects to consider.

Le but de cette thèse est d'atteindre l'état de mouvement fondamental sur des disques optomécaniques en arseniure de gallium. La mécanique quantique prévoit en effet que la quantité d'énergie d'un système physique (mécanique ou autre) ne peut jamais être réduite totalement à zéro. Il existe cependant un état de plus basse énergie, que l'on appelle l'état fondamental. L'effet physique utilisé pendant cette thèse pour extraire de l'énergie du système (et ainsi atteindre l'état fondamental) est le couplage opto-mécanique. Les micro-disques supportent des résonances optiques à symétrie axiale appelées modes de galerie ainsi que des résonances mécaniques appelées modes de respiration. Le couplage entre ces deux modes peut être intuitivement compris comme suit: lorsque le disque "respire" mécaniquement, la circonférence du disque ressentie par le mode optique change, ce qui induit un décalage de sa longueur d'onde de résonance. A l'inverse, le mode optique exerce une pression de radiation sur les parois du disque, qui peut amplifier ou atténuer le mouvement mécanique. Le refroidissement opto-mécanique est d'autant plus efficace que les résonances (optique comme mécanique) ont de faibles taux de dissipation. Une grande partie de ce travail de thèse à donc été dédiée à la réduction de ces pertes. Des efforts technologiques ont permis d'obtenir des structures lisses et régulières, pour éviter la diffusion (et donc la dissipation) de lumière par rugosités. Afin de réduire la dissipation mécanique, une structure novatrice incluant des boucliers mécaniques à été développée, et à permis de réduire la dissipation mécanique d'un facteur 100. L'état du système après refroidissement opto-mécanique dépend par ailleurs de sa température initiale. Il est donc avantageux de placer l'échantillon dans un cryostat. L'appareil utilisé au cours de cette thèse permet de refroidir l'échantillon jusqu'à une température de 2,6 K. Les expériences de photonique en environnement cryogénique imposant des contraintes en terme de stabilité, il a été nécessaire de d'opter pour une approche avec guide d'onde intégré. Le développement de guides d'ondes entièrement suspendus a permis d'apporter et de collecter la lumière depuis le disque de manière optimale. Toutes ces efforts ont permis de descendre à un taux d'occupation mécanique de 30 quanta. Cependant de nombreuses améliorations peuvent encore être implémentées, afin d'ancrer ces résonateurs fermement dans l'état fondamental, ce qui permettrait d'effectuer par exemple des expériences d'intrication quantique / The main goal of this PhD work has been to reach the quantum ground state on gallium arsenide optomechanical disks. Quantum mechanics predict that the amount of energy within a given system cannot be brought to zero. Nevertheless a state of minimal energy exists, called the ground state. The physical mechanism used to extract energy from the system (and thus reach the ground state) is the optomechanical coupling. The miniature disks support optical and mechanical resonances, respectively called whispering gallery modes and radial breathing modes. The coupling between these two modes can be intuited as follows: when the disk breathes mechanically, its perimeter increases. The optical mode evolves now in a wider cavity, and its resonance wavelength therefore changes. Conversely, the optical mode exerts radiation pressure on the disk boundaries, which can either amplify or damp the mechanical motion. Optomechanical cooling is more efficient if the dissipation rates of the optical and mechanical resonances are low. An important part of this PhD work has therefore been dedicated to the reduction of dissipation. Technological efforts have been made to fabricate smooth and regular structures, so as to limit optical scattering. A novel approach consisting of a mechanical shield has allowed to reduce mechanical damping by a factor of 100. The system state after optomechanical cooling depends on its initial temperature. It is therefore advantageous to place the system in cryogenic environment prior to starting the optomechanical cooling. The apparatus used throughout this PhD work can cool the optomechanical device down to 2.6 K. As optical experiments in cryogenic environment require a good mechanical stability, it is necessary to opt for fully integrated devices where the optomechanical resonator and the waveguide bringing the light to it are processed on the same chip. The development of fully suspended waveguides has moreover allowed to inject and collect light from the device more efficiently. All these improvements have allowed to reach a state of 30 excitation quanta in the mechanical resonator. However many ideas can still be tried to keep enhancing the devices, so as to anchor them more firmly in the ground state. This would open the way to more advanced experiments, such as entanglement of mechanical oscillators

Liniengetriebene Winde werden durch Impulsübertrag von Photonen auf ein Plasma bei Absorption oder Streuung in zahlreichen Spektrallinien beschleunigt. Dieser Prozess ist besonders effizient für ultraviolette Strahlung und Plasmatemperaturen zwischen 10^4 K und 10^5 K. Zu den astronomischen Objekten mit liniengetriebenen Winden gehören Sterne der Spektraltypen O, B und A, Wolf-Rayet-Sterne sowie Akkretionsscheiben verschiedenster Größenordnung, von Scheiben um junge Sterne und in kataklysmischen Veränderlichen bis zu Quasarscheiben. Es ist bislang nicht möglich, das vollständige Windproblem numerisch zu lösen, also die Hydrodynamik, den Strahlungstransport und das statistische Gleichgewicht dieser Strömungen gleichzeitig zu behandeln. Die Betonung liegt in dieser Arbeit auf der Windhydrodynamik, mit starken Vereinfachungen in den beiden anderen Gebieten. <br /> Wegen persönlicher Beteiligung betrachte ich drei Themen im Detail. <br /> 1. Windinstabilität durch Dopplerde-shadowing des Gases. Die Instabilität bewirkt, dass Windgas in dichte Schalen komprimiert wird, die von starken Stoßfronten begrenzt sind. Schnelle Wolken entstehen im Raum zwischen den Schalen und stoßen mit diesen zusammen. Dies erzeugt Röntgenflashes, die die beobachtete Röntgenstrahlung heißer Sterne erklären können. <br /> 2. Wind runway durch radiative Wellen. Der runaway zeigt, warum beobachtete liniengetriebene Winde schnelle, kritische Lösungen anstelle von Brisenlösungen (oder shallow solutions) annehmen. Unter bestimmten Bedingungen stabilisiert der Wind sich auf masseüberladenen Lösungen, mit einem breiten, abbremsenden Bereich und Knicken im Geschwindigkeitsfeld. <br /> 3. Magnetische Winde von Akkretionsscheiben um Sterne oder in aktiven Galaxienzentren. Die Linienbeschleunigung wird hier durch die Zentrifugalkraft entlang korotierender poloidaler Magnetfelder und die Lorentzkraft aufgrund von Gradienten im toroidalen Feld unterstützt. Ein Wirbelblatt, das am inneren Scheibenrand beginnt, kann zu stark erhöhten Massenverlustraten führen. / Line driven winds are accelerated by the momentum transfer from photons to a plasma, by absorption and scattering in numerous spectral lines. Line driving is most efficient for ultraviolet radiation, and at plasma temperatures from 10^4 K to 10^5 K. Astronomical objects which show line driven winds include stars of spectral type O, B, and A, Wolf-Rayet stars, and accretion disks over a wide range of scales, from disks in young stellar objects and cataclysmic variables to quasar disks. It is not yet possible to solve the full wind problem numerically, and treat the combined hydrodynamics, radiative transfer, and statistical equilibrium of these flows. The emphasis in the present writing is on wind hydrodynamics, with severe simplifications in the other two areas. <br /> I consider three topics in some detail, for reasons of personal involvement. <br /> 1. Wind instability, as caused by Doppler de-shadowing of gas parcels. The instability causes the wind gas to be compressed into dense shells enclosed by strong shocks. Fast clouds occur in the space between shells, and collide with the latter. This leads to X-ray flashes which may explain the observed X-ray emission from hot stars. <br /> 2. Wind runaway, as caused by a new type of radiative waves. The runaway may explain why observed line driven winds adopt fast, critical solutions instead of shallow (or breeze) solutions. Under certain conditions the wind settles on overloaded solutions, which show a broad deceleration region and kinks in their velocity law. <br /> 3. Magnetized winds, as launched from accretion disks around stars or in active galactic nuclei. Line driving is assisted by centrifugal forces along co-rotating poloidal magnetic field lines, and by Lorentz forces due to toroidal field gradients. A vortex sheet starting at the inner disk rim can lead to highly enhanced mass loss rates.