This Thesis comprises of two parts containing similar studies of Nonlinear Localization induced Base Isolation of structural systems. The present method of base isolation,like other nonlinear vibration isolation methods, enjoys certain merits like capability of absorbing broad band vibrations, attenuating heavy shocks etc. The research in this thesis is an extension of this base isolation strategy first proposed by Vakakis and co-author. The strategy involves augmenting an appendage referred to as the secondary system with the main structural unit or the primary system, which we want to isolate from disturbances at the base. The primary system is coupled to the secondary system through a stiffness element. Both the primary and secondary systems have nonlinear dynamic behavior. It is seen that for certain choice of values of the coupling element, steady state vibration of very small magnitude is induced in the primary system. This result was established by considering a general discrete nonlinear system with viscous damping. Now it is a well known fact that viscous damping, though being widely used in literature as well as in practice doesn't turn out to be accurate enough to capture structural damping behaviors. Moreover, the actual damping mechanism if governed by some nonlinear function of the system variables, may influence the physics governing the nonlinear localization phenomenon in a manner rendering the present method not suitable for structural systems at the very outset. So in the present study we focus our attention in establishing the robustness and hence utility of the method by considering technically more defensible models of structural damping. These models efficiently capture certain complex phenomena which structures are known to exhibit. The occurrence of localization induced vibration isolation in structural systems in the presence of these damping models is taken as a proof of the efficacy of the method and its applicability to a wide range of situations. The present study establishes existence of localization through relevant analytical and numerical exercises. In the first part of the thesis we take up the study of nonlinear localization induced base isolation of a three degrees of freedom system having cubic nonlinearities under sinusoidal base excitation. The damping forces in the system are hysteretic in nature. In the present setting this is captured by Bouc-Wen model of hysteresis. Bouc-Wen model is one of the most widely used phenomenological model of hysteresis to have a ready-to-use mathematical description of hysteretic patterns appearing in structural engineering systems. The nature of responses of the different degrees of freedom as excitation frequency varies is a better way of analyzing the performance of the vibration isolation system. We adopt this line of approach for the present study. Normally Harmonic Balance Method (HBM) serves this purpose very well but in the present case as the hysteretic variable is not explicitly related to the system variables, HBM cannot be straightway implemented. Moreover, the hysteretic variable is related to other state variables through a relation which contains non-smooth terms. As a result, Incremental Harmonic Balance (IHB) method is used to obtain amplitude frequency relationship of the system response. The stability analysis of the solution branches is done by using Floquet Theory. Direct numerical simulation is then made use of to support our results that are obtained from this approximate numeric-analytic estimate of the amplitudefrequency relationships of the system, which helps us to analyze the efficacy of this method of base isolation for a broad class of systems. In the next part we consider a similar system where the damping forces in the system are described by functions of fractional derivative of the instantaneous displacements. Fractional Derivative based damping model has been found to be very effective in describing structural damping. We adopt half-order fractional derivative for our study, which can capture damping behavior of polymeric material very well. Typically linear and quadratic damping is considered separately as these are the two most relevant representations of structural damping. Under the assumption of smallness of certain system parameters and nonlinear terms an approximate estimate of the response at each degree of freedom of the system is obtained using Method of Multiple Scales. We then consider a situation where the nonlinear terms and certain other system parameters are no longer small. For the case where asymptotic methods are no longer valid, the assessment of performance of the vibration isolation system is made from amplitude-frequency relations. As a result, we take recourse to the Harmonic Balance Method in conjunction with arc length based continuation technique for obtaining the frequency amplitude plot for linear damping and Incremental Harmonic Balance method for quadratic damping, each of which is validated against results obtained from direct numerical simulation of the system. It needs to be appreciated that base isolation obtained this way has no counterpart in the linear theory.

The achievable accuracy of hygrothermal building component simulation is significantly dependent on the applied material functions. These functions are determined by the material modelling marking the connection between the basic storage and transport parameters which are obtained from basic measurements, and the storage and transport coefficients which are defined within the balance and flow equations. It is the aim of the present study to develop a flexible and widely applicable material model which is not restricted to the current level of the transport theory. Furthermore, limits and options of this model are to be validated by means of four building materials on the basis of special transient moisture profile measurements. The study’s starting point is a comprehensive investigation of both, the different existing modelling approaches and the available experimental methods to determine basic hygrothermal material parameters. On this basis, the material modelling is set into the context of the heat and moisture transport theory derived from thermodynamics. The involved limits and restrictions are highlighted and options as well as requirements for further developments are pointed out. The developments this study focuses on comprise three fields: experiments for basic property determination, material modelling, and experiments for material model validation. The set of basic material investigation methods has been extended by the drying experiment under defined conditions. The different influences on the drying as well as its application to hygrothermal material model calibration are pointed out and appraised. On this basis, a drying apparatus is designed, built and applied. Ultimately, standardisation criteria and the derivation of a single-value drying coefficient are evaluated. Appropriate extensions are indicated. Based on the bundle of tubes approach, an own material model is developed. It is coupled with a mechanistical approach accounting for serial and parallel structured moisture transport phenomena. The derived liquid water conductivity is adjusted by the help of measured conductivity data close to saturation as well as within the hygroscopic moisture range. Subsequently, two internal modelling parameters are calibrated which is done by numerical simulation of the water uptake and the drying experiment under consideration of the hysteresis of moisture storage. Facilitating its application to the obtained laboratory data, the material model has been implemented into a computer program. It is applied to the four building materials brick, lime-sand brick, aerated concrete and calcium silicate. The adjusted material functions are shown and discussed. In all four cases, the calibration provides an excellent agreement between measured and calculated material behaviour. As experimental basis of the material model validation, the instantaneous profile measurement technique (IPM) has been extended to be applied in Building Physics. Special equipment is developed and measurement procedures are designed. Different models to derive the water content from dielectric data obtained by Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR) measurements are evaluated and implemented. Ultimately, an extensive program of transient moisture profile measurements within the hygroscopic and the overhygroscopic moisture content range is conducted and evaluated. Within the frame of validation, the developments on the experimental as well as on the modelling fields are combined. The IPM experiments are recalculated on the basis of the measured initial and boundary conditions applying the adjusted and calibrated material functions. The comparison of measured and calculated data reveals the power of the developed material modelling just as the consequences of the simplifications made on the transport theory level. The distinct influences of the hysteresis of moisture storage consisting of effects depending on the process history and effects depending on the process dynamics, are proven. By the presented study, the material modelling has been decisively further developed, the set of basic measurement methods has been extended by a substantial experiment and the instantaneous profile measurement technique has been made applicable to Building Physics. Moreover, the influences of the process history and the process dynamics on the moisture transport and the resulting moisture profiles could be shown and proven. By that, not only a material model is now available which perfectly applies to the requirements of flexibility, applicability and extendability. The obtained data provides also a powerful basis for further research and development. / Die Genauigkeit hygrothermischer Bauteilsimulation hängt maßgeblich von den verwendeten Materialfunktionen ab. Sie werden durch die Materialmodellierung bestimmt, welche die Verbindung zwischen den aus Basisexperimenten gewonnenen Speicher- und Transportparametern sowie den innerhalb der Bilanz- und Flussgleichungen definierten Speicher- und Transportkoeffizienten herstellt. Ziel der vorliegenden Arbeit ist zum einen die Entwicklung eines flexiblen, breit anwendbaren und gleichzeitig nicht auf den gegenwärtigen Stand der Transporttheorie beschränkten Materialmodells. Dessen Grenzen und Möglichkeiten sollen zum anderen auf der Grundlage spezieller instationärer Feuchteprofilmessungen anhand von vier Baustoffen untersucht und aufgezeigt werden. Ausgangspunkt der Arbeit ist eine ausführliche Beleuchtung sowohl der vorhandenen Modellansätze als auch der zur Verfügung stehenden experimentellen Methoden zur Bestimmung hygrothermischer Basisparameter. Auf dieser Grundlage wird die Materialmodellierung in den Kontext der aus der Thermodynamik abgeleiteten Wärmeund Feuchtetransporttheorie eingeordnet. Die damit verbundenen Grenzen und Einschränkungen werden hervorgehoben und Entwicklungsmöglichkeiten sowie weiterer Entwicklungsbedarf aufgezeigt. Dieser umfasst drei Bereiche: die Experimente zur Bestimmung von Basisparametern, die Materialmodellierung, sowie Experimente zur Modellvalidierung. Die Reihe der Basisexperimente wird um den Trocknungsversuch unter definierten Bedingungen erweitert. Die verschiedenen Einflüsse auf die Trocknung und deren Anwendung in der Kalibrierung hygrothermischer Materialmodellierung werden herausgestellt und bewertet. Darauf aufbauend wird eine Apparatur entworfen, gebaut und angewendet. Schließlich werden Kriterien zur Standardisierung und Ableitung eines Einzahlenkennwertes evaluiert. Sinnvolle Erweiterungen werden aufgezeigt. Es wird ein eigenes Materialmodell auf der Grundlage eines Porenbündelansatzes hergeleitet, welches mit einem mechanistischen Ansatz gekoppelt wird, der den Feuchtetransport in seriell und parallel strukturierte Bereiche untergliedert. Die abgeleitete Flüssigwasserleitfähigkeit wird anhand von Leitfähigkeitsmessdaten im nahe gesättigten sowie im hygroskopischen Feuchtebereich justiert. Zwei interne Modellparameter werden anschließend unter Berücksichtigung der Hysterese der Feuchtespeicherung anhand des Aufsaug- und des Trocknungsversuches kalibriert. Das Materialmodell ist zur Erleichterung der Anwendung in ein Computerprogramm zur Anpassung an die Labordaten implementiert worden. Das Programm wird auf die vier Baustoffe Ziegel, Kalksandstein, Porenbeton und Calciumsilikat angewendet. Die entsprechend angepassten Materialfunktionen werden gezeigt und diskutiert. Im Rahmen der Kalibrierung wird eine hervorragende Übereinstimmung zwischen gemessenem und berechnetem Materialverhalten erreicht. Zur Modellvalidierung wird die Augenblicksprofilmethode (IPM) für die bauphysikalische Anwendung erweitert. Spezielle Apparaturen werden entwickelt und Versuchsabläufe entworfen. Modelle zur Ableitung des Wassergehaltes aus mit Hilfe der Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR) gewonnenen Dielektrizitätsmessdaten werden evaluiert und implementiert. Schließlich wird ein umfangreiches Programm an Feuchteprofilmessungen im hygroskopischen und überhygroskopischen Feuchtebereich umgesetzt und ausgewertet. Im Rahmen der Validierung werden die Entwicklungen auf experimenteller sowie auf Modellierungsebene zusammengeführt. Die IPM Experimente werden anhand der gemessenen Anfangs- und Randbedingungen und auf der Grundlage der angepassten und kalibrierten Materialfunktionen nachgerechnet. Der Vergleich zwischen Messung und Rechnung offenbart die Stärke der entwickelten Materialmodellierung ebenso, wie den Einfluss der auf Ebene der Transporttheorie getroffenen Vereinfachungen. Ein deutlicher Einfluss der sich aus der Prozessgeschichte sowie der Prozessdynamik zusammensetzenden Hysterese der Feuchtespeicherung kann nachgewiesen werden. Mit der vorliegenden Arbeit ist somit nicht nur die Materialmodellierung entscheidend weiterentwickelt, die Reihe der einfachen Basisexperimente um einen wesentlichen Versuch erweitert und die Augenblicksprofilmethode für bauphysikalische Belange anwendbar gemacht worden, es wurden auch die Einflüsse der Prozessgeschichte, und erstmals auch der Prozessdynamik, auf den Feuchtetransport sowie die sich einstellenden Feuchteprofile deutlich aufgezeigt und nachgewiesen. Es ist demnach nicht nur ein Materialmodell, welches den gestellten Anforderungen an Flexibilität, breite Anwendbarkeit und Erweiterbarkeit genügt, entwickelt worden, es wird mit den gewonnenen Messdaten auch die Grundlage weiterer Forschung zur Verfügung gestellt.

This thesis reports the inspection and manipulation of thin ferroelectric films of lead titanate (PbTiO3 : PTO), lead zirconium titanate (Pb(Zr0.25Ti0.75)O3 : PZT), and barium titanate (BaTiO3 : BTO) by means of scanning force microscopy - specifically Piezoresponse and Kelvin-Probe. The film thickness of the investigated samples ranged between 50nm and 800nm. This experimental work focussed on the following issues: native domain structures, creation of domains by short voltage pulses and area-switching with the force microscope, local qualitative and quantitative measurements of the ferroelectric hysteresis loops, and investigations at the interface between film and platinum-electrode in the PZT/Pt-System. Lamellar domain structures were visualized with high lateral resolution of 5nm on the surface of the PTO-samples, whereas the PZT- and BTO-samples showed prepolarisation and no domains. In the switching experiments a pronounced thickness dependence was found and partly a good agreement to macroscopic measurements. For BTO-films of 50nm and 125nm thickness no stable switching of polarisation could be observed. Using appropriate preparation methods it was possible to provide evidence of a 200nm thick interface layer with reduced polarisation above the electrode in the PZT/Pt-system. / Gegenstand dieser Arbeit ist die Untersuchung dünner ferroelektrischer Schichten von Bleititanat (PbTiO3 : PTO), Bleizirkoniumtitanat (Pb(Zr0.25Ti0.75)O3 : PZT) und Bariumtitanat (BaTiO3 : BTO) und deren Manipulation auf der sub-µm-Skalamittels Rasterkraftmikroskopie. Die Dicke der Schichten lag im Bereich von 50nm bis 800nm. Zum Einsatz kamen die Meßmodi Piezoresponse und Kelvin-Sonde. Die experimentelle Arbeit erstreckte sich über die Abbildung von Domänenstrukturen, die Erzeugung von Domänen durch kurze Spannungspulse und flächiges Umschalten mit dem Kraftmikroskop, lokale qualitative und quantitative Messungen der ferroelektrischen Hysterese, sowie Untersuchungen an der Grenzschicht zwischen Film und Platin-Elektrode am PZT/Pt-System. Lamellenartige Domänenstrukturen konnten mit hoher lateraler Auflösung von 5nm auf der Oberfläche von PTO abgebildet werden. Die PZT- und BTO-Proben waren vorpolarisiert und es ließen sich keine Domänen nachweisen. Bei den Schaltversuchen wurde eine ausgeprägte Schichtdickenabhängigkeit der Koerzitivfeldstärken und teilweise gute Übereinstimmung mit makroskopischen Messungen gefunden. Für dünne BTO-Schichten von 50nm und 125nm Dicke konnte kein stabiles Umschalten der Polarisation gezeigt werden. Mittels geeigneter Präparation der PZT/Pt-Grenzschicht konnte durch direkte Messung eine Schicht von 200nm Dicke mit verminderter Polarisation oberhalb der Elektrode nachgewiesen werden.

Das Ziel dieser Arbeit ist die optische Untersuchung von ferroelektrischen Domänen und Domänenwänden auf lokaler Skala. Dafür wurden neuartige nichtinvasive Ansätze entwickelt, die auf der Anwendung optischer Rastersondenmikroskopie basieren. Die untersuchten Schlüsseleigenschaften umfassen den elektrooptischen Effekt für verschiedene Domänenorientierungen und die Brechungindexänderungen an Domänenwänden an Bariumtitanat-Einkristallen. Die lokale Messung der elektrooptischen Eigenschaften wurde mit räumlich stark begrenzten elektrischen Feldern durchgeführt, die mittels elektrisch leitfähigen Spitzen angelegt wurden. Dieser experimentelle Ansatz erlaubt nicht nur die Messung verschiedener elektrooptischer Koeffzienten, sondern auch die Unterscheidung von allen auftretenden, auch antiparallelen, Domänenausrichtungen. Durch Anlegen eines zusätzlichen elektrischen Feldes mittels der gleichen Spitze konnte auch das ferroelektrische Schalten mit dieser optischen Methode untersucht werden. Die Experimente wurden durch eine numerische Modellierung der elektrischen Feldverteilung und der resultierenden elektrooptischen Antwort begleitet. Die Ergebnisse der Modellierung sind dabei in sehr guter Übereinstimmung mit den experimentellen Ergebnissen. Dies erlaubt auch die Trennung von Beiträgen verschiedener elektrooptischer Koeffzienten und den entsprechenden Feldkomponenten. ür die experimentelle Untersuchung von den theoretisch vorhergesagten Brechungsindexprofilen einzelner Domänenwände, wurde die Sensitivität der optischen Sonde auf lokale Änderungen des Brechungsindex mittels Polarisations- und Positionsmodulation erhöht. Obwohl die Abbildung einer einzelnen Domänenwand nicht gelang, konnte damit zumindest eine obere Grenze für den optischen Effekt einer Domänenwand experimentell gewonnen werden, welche verträglich mit den theoretischen Vorhersagen ist. / The goal of this thesis is the optical investigation of ferroelectric domains and domain walls at the very local scale. For that, novel noninvasive approaches based on optical scanning probe microscopy are developed. The key properties investigated are the electrooptic effect for different domain orientations and refractive-index changes at single domain walls of barium titanate single crystals. The local probing of the electro-optic response is performed with strongly confined electric fields, applied via a conductive tip. With this approach we can not only probe different electro-optic coeffcients, but also identify all occurring domain orientations, even antiparallel ones. The application of additional bias fields by the same tip is used to investigate ferroelectric switching and domain growth by optical means. The experiments are supported by numerical modelling of the electric-field distribution and the resulting electro-optic response. The modelling shows excellent agreement with the measurements, and allows us to separate the contributions of different electro-optic coeffcients and their associated electric-field components. For the experimental observation of the theoretically predicted refractive-index profiles at single ferroelectric domain walls, polarization and position modulation of the optical probe is used to obtain high sensitivity to local modifications of the refractive index. An upper limit to the optical effect to the optical effect of a single domain wall is deduced from the experiment, which is compatible with the effect predicted by theory.

On étudie, dans cette thèse, la diffusion d'ondes dans différents milieux nonlinéaires possédant une bande interdite naturelle. On montre, en particulier, l'existence d'un comportement de bistabilité dans les milieux régis, soit par l'équation de sine-Gordon (chaîne de pendules courte, réseaux de jonctions Josephson, double couches à effet Hall quantique), soit par l'équation de Schrödinger nonlinéaire (milieu Kerr et milieu de Bragg), dans les cas discrets et continus. Ces différents milieux sont soumis à des conditions aux bords périodiques, dont la fréquence est prise dans la bande interdite et avec une amplitude déterminant l'état de stabilité du système. En effet, pour une amplitude suffisante (supratransmission), le milieu n'est plus réfléchissant et absorbe de l'énergie, faisant passer le signal de sortie d'un état d'amplitude évanescente vers un état de très grande amplitude. On donne, par ailleurs, une description analytique complète de la bistabilité qui permet de comprendre les différents états stationnaires observés dans ces milieux et de prédire le passage d'un état à un autre.

From the Proceedings of the 1971 Meetings of the Arizona Section - American Water Resources Assn. and the Hydrology Section - Arizona Academy of Science - April 22-23, 1971, Tempe, Arizona / Knowledge of the dynamic water content-pressure potential relationship within the soil profile is useful in determining the importance of hysteresis under natural conditions. Continuous monitoring of water content in the field is now possible using recently developed gamma-ray transmission equipment which allows water content measurements in 1 cm-thick soil layers with an error of 0.0009 gm/gm. The nuclear equipment and the tensiometer assembly for pressure measurements are described. Soil water content and pressure in the top 10 cm of a field soil profile were measured continuously for a 2-week period following an irrigation. The highest water content was measured each day just before sunrise. This declined rapidly from early morning to early afternoon, and was followed by a gain during the mid-afternoon and evening. The amplitude of this diurnal change diminished with time after irrigation. The pressure potential at a depth of 1.5 cm decreased most rapidly as the water content declined, but not exactly in phase. This may have been due to temperature effects on the pressure metering system. A moisture characteristic curve was constructed from the data.

The thesis concerns polyelectrolyte gels in contact with oppositely charged proteins and surfactant micelles, and includes of four papers (I-IV). In paper I confocal Raman spectroscopy was introduced as a method to trace micelles and investigate the structure of gel-surfactant complexes, in phase separated gel spheres. In paper II, the binding of surfactants to microspheres (~50-100 µm) was investigated by means of a micromanipulator-assisted microscopy method. The two surfactants were found to display qualitative difference respect to degree of swelling, surfactant distribution in the gels, and the difference is discussed in terms of absence/presence of hydrophobic attraction to the polyelectrolyte gel network. Kinetics of volume change in gels were analyzed. Aggregation numbers of micelles in polystyrenesulfonate (PSS) solutions, obtained from fluorescence quenching measurements, are presented. In paper III, phase behaviour, protein assembly and diffusion, was studied in PSS gel microspheres. Interpretation of results was aided by measurements of osmotic swelling of individual gel networks, and by combining the results with studies of protein diffusion in macroscopic (cm-sized) gel spheres. Complexes formed were further analyzed with small angle x-ray spectroscopy. In paper IV phase behaviour of mixed ionic/nonionic surfactant micelles is investigated in cm-sized gel spheres. The coexistence of three phases, the formation of dense shells in the bulk of the gels and other phenomena are described for the first time, and the results are presented along with discussion on the charge-density of spherical micelles and of  network induced hysteresis effects in gels. The composition and microstructure of phases are investigated by confocal Raman spectroscopy and small-angle x-ray scattering respectively. The results are interpreted with aid of highly detailed theoretical model calculations.

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Ni80Fe20 and Ni80Fe20/NiO films and nano-stripes were characterized magnetically through AC and DC susceptibility measurements, and hysteresis loops as a function of field and temperature. While the near-pattern films were characterized in the in-plane configuration only, the nano-stripes were characterized in parallel, transverse and the perpendicular field configurations. The effects of the constrained geometry on the coercivity, exchange bias field, and the superparamagnetic blocking temperature were studied. It was determined that the coercivity, exchange bias field and the superparamagnetic blocking temperature can be controlled, not only by using a patterned media instead of a plane film, but also by the orientation of that pattern.