This research provides the original work on the geometry factors selection for single crystal sapphire optical fiber (SCSF) to improve the optical property in sensing applications. Single crystal sapphire fibers were fabricated with a Laser Heated Pedestal Growth (LHPG) system, which was constructed in-house at Virginia Tech. The cost effective, high efficiency and fully operational Laser-heated Pedestal Growth (LHPG) system as well as the fiber fabrication process were also demonstrated in this research. The results indicated the windmill single crystal sapphire optical fiber (SCSF) will readily improve the performance of current fiber optic sensors in the harsh environment and potentially enable those that are limited by the optical property of unclad single crystal sapphire optical fiber (SCSF). / Ph. D. / This research provides the original work on the geometry factors selection for single crystal sapphire optical fiber (SCSF) to improve the optical property in sensing applications. Single crystal sapphire fibers were fabricated with a Laser Heated Pedestal Growth (LHPG) system, which was constructed in-house at Virginia Tech. The cost effective, high efficiency and fully operational Laser-heated Pedestal Growth (LHPG) system as well as the fiber fabrication process were also demonstrated in this research. The results indicated the windmill single crystal sapphire optical fiber (SCSF) will readily improve the performance of current fiber optic sensors in the harsh environment and potentially enable those that are limited by the optical property of unclad single crystal sapphire optical fiber (SCSF).

Servo control of pneumatic actuators is difficult due to the high compressibility and non-linear flow of air. Friction as well as uncertainties in the parameters and model character-izing dynamics of the pneumatic systems further contribute to control challenges. These drawbacks cause stick-slip motion, larger tracking error and limit cycles, which degrades the control performances. Selection of a controller that satisfies requirements of the per-forming tasks is thus crucial in servo-pneumatic applications. This thesis focuses on the design and experimental evaluation of a model-based, nonlinear controller known as Dy-namical Adaptive Backstepping-Sliding Mode Control (DAB-SMC). Originally designed for chemical process control and applied only in simulations, the DAB-SMC is adopted in this thesis and applied to the new area of servo-pneumatic control of a single-rod, double acting pneumatic cylinder and antagonistic pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs). The con-troller is further enhanced by augmenting it with LuGre-based friction observers to com-pensate the adverse frictional effect presents in both actuators. Unlike other research works, the actuators are subject to a varying load that influences control operations in two different modes: motion assisting or resisting. The implementation of DAB-SMC for such servo-pneumatic control application is novel. The mass flow rates of compressed air into and out of the actuators are regulated using one of the following valve configurations: a 5/3-way proportional directional valve, two 3/2-way or four 2/2-way Pulse Width Modu-lation (PWM)-controlled valves. Over the entire range of experiments which involve vari-ous operating conditions, the DAB-SMC is observed to track and regulate the reference input trajectories successfully and in a stable manner. Average root mean square error (RMSE) values of tracking for cylinder and PAMs when the compressed air is regulated using the 5/3-way proportional valve are 1.73mm and 0.10°, respectively. In case of regu-lation, the average steady-state error (SSE) values are 0.71mm and 0.04°, respectively. The DAB-SMC exhibits better control performance than the standard PID and classical SMC by at least 33%. The DAB-SMC also demonstrates robustness for up to 78% in un-certainty of load parameter. When the control valve is replaced by the PWM-controlled valves of 3/2-way and 2/2-way configurations, performance is slightly compromised. / May 2016

MSc / Thesis (MSc (Physics))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009. / The propagation of electromagnetic radiation in homogeneous or periodically modulated media can be described by the coupled mode equations. The aim of this study was to derive analytical expressions modeling the solutions of the coupled-mode equations, as alternative to the generally used numerical and transfer-matrix methods. The path integral formalism was applied to the coupled-mode equations. This approach involved deriving a path integral from which a generating functional was obtained. From the generating functional a Green’s function, or propagator, describing the nature of mode propagation was extracted. Initially a Green’s function was derived for the propagation of modes having position independent coupling coefficients. This corresponds to modes propagating in a homogeneous medium or in a uniform grating formed by a periodic variation of the index of refraction along the direction of propagation. This was followed by the derivation of a Green’s function for the propagation of modes having position dependent coupling coefficients with the aid of perturbation theory. This models propagation through a nonuniform inhomogeneous medium, specifically a modulated grating. The propagator method was initially tested for the case of propagation in an arbitrary homogeneous medium. In doing so three separate cases were considered namely the copropagation of two modes in the forward and backward directions followed by the counter propagation of the two modes. These more trivial cases were used as examples to develop a rigorous mathematical formalism for this approach. The results were favourable in that the propagator’s results compared well with analytical and numerical solutions. The propagator method was then tested for mode propagation in a periodically perturbed waveguide. This corresponds to the relevant application of mode propagation in uniform gratings in optical fibres. Here two case were investigated. The first scenario was that of the copropagation of two modes in a long period transmission grating. The results achieved compared well with numerical results and analytical solutions. The second scenario was the counter propagation of two modes in a short period reflection grating, specifically a Bragg grating. The results compared well with numerical results and analytical solutions. In both cases it was shown that the propagator accurately predicts many of the spectral properties of these uniform gratings. Finally the propagator method was applied to a nonuniform grating, that is a grating for which the uniform periodicity is modulated - in this case by a raised-cosine function. The result of this modulation is position dependent coupling coefficients necessitating the use of the Green’s function derived using perturbation theory. The results, although physically sensible and qualitatively correct, did not compare well to the numerical solution or the well established transfer-matrix method on a quantitative level at wavelengths approaching the design wavelength of the grating. This can be explained by the breakdown of the assumptions of first order perturbation theory under these conditions.

In this thesis, novel regimes of mode locking in quantum dot semiconductor laser diodes have been investigated by exploiting the unique features offered by quantum dots. Using an unconventional approach, the role of excited state transitions in the quantum dots was exploited as an additional degree of freedom for the mode locking of experimental quantum dot lasers. For the first time, passive mode locking via ground (1260nm) or excited state (1190nm) was demonstrated in a quantum dot laser. Picosecond pulses were generated at a repetition rate of 21GHz and 20.5GHz, for the ground and excited states respectively, with average powers in excess of 25mW. Switching between these two states in the mode-locking regime was achieved by changing the electrical biasing conditions, thus providing full control of the operating spectral band. A novel regime for mode locking in a quantum-dot laser was also investigated, where the simultaneous presence of cw emission in the excited-state band at high injection current levels, dramatically reduced the duration of the pulses generated via the ground state, whilst simultaneously boosting its peak power. This represents a radically different trend from the one typically observed in mode-locked lasers. From this investigation, it was concluded that the role of the excited state can not be neglected in the generation of ultrashort pulses from quantum-dot lasers. Stable passive mode locking of a quantum-dot laser over an extended temperature range (from 20ºC to 80ºC) was also demonstrated at relatively high output average powers. It was observed that the pulse duration and the spectral width decreased significantly as the temperature was increased up to 70ºC. The process of carrier escape in the absorber was identified as the main contributing factor that led to a decrease in the absorber recovery time as a function of increasing temperature which facilitated a decrease in the pulse durations. These results are shown to open the way for the ultimate deployment of ultra stable and uncooled mode-locked semiconductor diode lasers.

Les ventilateurs ont connu des progrès technologiques considérables grâce à l'application de concepts physiologiques, à l'électronique, à l'informatique et la miniaturisation. Leurs conceptions et performances intrinsèques, en revanche, ont pu rester inégales sur certains points. L'objectif de ce travail a été d'évaluer sur un banc d'essai, avec un protocole, adapté aux problématiques soulevées en pratique clinique, tous les ventilateurs de réanimation, transport et de ventilation non invasive de façon rigoureuse et reproductible. Les résultats montrent que 1) l'erreur sur le volume réellement délivré est très fréquente et correspond facilement à 1ml/kg de volume supplémentaire ; le VT indiqué sur les ventilateurs est inférieur au VT réellement délivré ; 2) les performances des nouveaux ventilateurs ne présentent pas d'améliorations significatives par rapport aux meilleurs ventilateurs testés en 2000; les ventilateurs à turbine sont identiques ou proches des meilleurs ventilateurs conventionnels ; 3) les ventilateurs dédiés à la ventilation non invasive montrent de meilleures performances pour s'adapter à la présence de fuites ; 4) la ventilation par percussion intra-pulmonaire superposée à la ventilation conventionnelle peut réduire l'apport de l'humidification, influencer les volumes administrés et induire une pression expiratoire positive intrinsèque. Les tests sur banc montrent une grande hétérogénéité des performances. Une veille technologique semble indispensable pour évaluer tout nouveau ventilateur / The ventilators have markedly improved thanks to progress in respiratory physiology, in informatics and miniaturization. However, their intrinsic performances remain unequal. The aim was to evaluate ventilators performances on reproducible bench test studies adapted to clinical questions. Tests show that 1) the error of really delivered volume is approximately 1 ml/kg of additional volume; the tidal volume (VT) indicated on the ventilators was lower than the real delivered VT ; 2) Performances of new ventilators are comparable to the best ventilators tested in 2000 ; turbine ventilators are quite similar to best conventional ventilators ; 3) The ventilators dedicated to non invasive ventilation showed better performances to cope with leaks 4) The intrapulmonary percussive ventilation superimposed on conventional ventilation can reduce humidity, increase volumes and can generate intrinsic positive expiratory pressure. The bench tests showed a large heterogeneity of performances. A technological watch seems essential to evaluate all new ventilators

Cette thèse porte sur la fissuration par fatigue sous chargement variable en mode mixte I+II+III et sur les effets d'histoire induits par la plasticité confinée et les contraintes internes. Les essais réalisés montrent qu’il existe des effets antagonistes d’histoire du chargement à courte distance et à longue distance, que la forme de la séquence de chargement est cruciale et, par comparaison, que les effets de contact et de frottement sont d’importance moindre. Les contraintes internes jouent un rôle majeur sur la vitesse de fissuration par fatigue et sur le mode de fissuration. Une démarche a été mise en place pour étudier le comportement élasto-plastique d’une section représentative du front de la fissure par éléments finis. Pour ne retenir des calculs réalisés que le minimum d’information nécessaire, on se donne une approximation cinématique, le champ de vitesse est partitionné en composantes de modes I, II, III élastiques et plastiques, chaque composante étant caractérisée par un facteur d’intensité et une distribution spatiale fixe. Les calculs réalisés ont permis de sélectionner 7 trajets de chargement différents en mode I+II et en mode I+II+III, qui présentent les mêmes amplitudes pour chaque mode, les mêmes maxima, minima et valeurs moyennes. Ces trajets, censés être équivalents au sens des critères de rupture usuels, ne le sont pourtant pas lorsqu’on considère le comportement élasto-plastique du matériau et conduisent à des vitesses et des trajets de fissuration expérimentaux très différents les uns des autres. Les simulations numériques et la modélisation simplifiée sont en accord avec les résultats expérimentaux. Les calculs réalisés ont également permis de discuter le rôle des phases de chargement en mode III sur la fissuration. Le comportement du matériau étant non-linéaire, la direction du chargement nominal ne coïncide pas nécessairement avec celle de l’écoulement plastique. Ajouter une phase de chargement en mode III peut, dans certains cas, modifier très significativement le comportement de la fissure (direction de propagation, vitesse de fissuration, écoulement plastique). / This thesis deals with fatigue crack growth in non-proportional variable amplitude mixed mode I + II + III loading conditions and analyses the effects of internal stresses stemming from the confinement of the plastic zone in small scale yielding conditions. The tests showed that there are antagonistic long-distance and short-distance effects of the loading history on fatigue crack growth. The shape of loading path, and not only the maximum and minimum values in this path, is crucial and, by comparison, the effects of contact and friction are of lesser importance. Internal stresses play a major role on the fatigue crack growth rate and on the crack path. An approach was developed to analyze the elastic-plastic behavior of a representative section of the crack front using the FEA. A model reduction technic is used to extract the relevant information from the FE results. To do so, the velocity field is partitioned into mode I, II, III elastic and plastic components, each component being characterized by an intensity factor and a fixed spatial distribution. The calculations were used to select seven loading paths in I + II and I + II + III mixed mode conditions, which all have the same amplitudes for each mode, the same maximum, minimum and average values. These paths are supposed to be equivalent in the sense of common failure criteria, but differ significantly when the elastic-plastic behavior of the material is accounted for. The results of finite element simulations and of simulations using a simplified model proposed in this thesis are both in agreement with experimental results. The approach was also used to discuss the role of mode III loading steps. Since the material behavior is nonlinear, the nominal loading direction does not coïncide with the plastic flow direction. Adding a mode III loading step in a mode I+II fatigue cycle, may, in some cases, significantly modify the behaviour of the crack (crack growth rate, crack path and plasti flow).

Le contrat de bail est habituellement présenté comme la seule voie qui règle la question de l'accession au logement. Il apparait pourtant utile de se pencher vers d'autres combinaisons voisines que le bail afin d'assurer au candidat au logement un statut attrayant d'un point de vue juridique et social.Le démembrement de la propriété, ordinairement décrit comme un mécanisme subi, dévoile des virtualités intéressantes lorsqu'il est employé dans le cadre de l'accession à un logement. C'est ainsi que l'usufruit temporaire offre une alternative innovante aux personnes dont les ressources personnelles ne permettent pas d'accéder à la propriété.Exclusivement envisagé par les rédacteurs du Code civil comme un moyen d'allouer des revenus de subsistance à son titulaire, l'usufruit devient un mode original d'appropriation des biens. Si le rôle domestique de l'usufruit est attaché à sa tradition historique, la contribution de l'usufruit à la réalisation d'un droit au logement nouveau imprimera une nouvelle finalité à cette prérogative / The lease is usually presented as the only way to resolve the issue of access to housing. It appears, however, useful to look to other neighboring combinations that the lease to ensure the candidate attractive to housing status of a legally and socially.The dismemberment of the property, usually described as a mechanism for sustained, reveals interesting potentialities when used as part of home accommodation.Thus the temporary usufruct offers an innovative alternative to individuals whose personal resources do not allow access to the property.Exclusively envisaged by the drafters of the Civil Code as a means to allocate subsistence income to the holder, the usufruct is an original mode of appropriation of property. If the domestic role of the usufruct is attached to its historical tradition, the contribution of the usufruct to the achievement of a new right to housing will print a new purpose that prerogative

Ce travail est une étude des erreurs commises par les apprenants tunisiens en 4è année secondaire (baccalauréat) concernant le mode, le temps et l’aspect, à travers un exercice scolaire important, la rédaction d’un essai. Le travail comprend trois parties. La première est réservée à l’examen de la situation sociolinguistique en Tunisie en vue de dégager les spécificités langagières des apprenants ainsi que des éléments en rapport avec les questions de mode, de temps et d’aspect en français et en arabe, langue maternelle des apprenants. En outre, cette partie englobe aussi une présentation de certaines notions-clés telles que celles de l’erreur ou de l’interférence, etc. La deuxième partie est consacrée à l’analyse des erreurs commises par les apprenants en ce qui concerne l’expression modale, verbo-temporelle dans leurs productions argumentatives. Elle commence par une description des erreurs constatées. Ensuite, une phase de recherche des origines éventuelles de ces erreurs est envisagée en vue de tenter d’avancer certaines propositions didactiques susceptibles d’améliorer la maîtrise de ces catégories verbales par les apprenants tunisiens arabophones dans le cadre de la production textuelle, seul cadre capable de mettre en œuvre toute la complexité du système verbal. La dernière partie du travail est réservée à quelques propositions didactiques. Outre une analyse des nouveaux manuels tunisiens, issus de la dernière réforme de l’enseignement du français, cette partie comprend une séquence didactique portant sur la rédaction d’un texte argumentatif et l’emploi de certaines formes verbales. / This work is a study of the errors made by Tunisian learners in 4th secondary year (baccalaureate) concerning the mode, tense and aspect, through a very important school exercise namely the essay writing. This work includes three main parts. The first, primarily theoretical, it examines the sociolinguistic situation in Tunisia so that to give an idea about the environment in which our learners-authors develop. In this part also, different elements which are in connection with the questions of mode, tense and aspect in French as well as in Arabic- the mother tongue of Tunisian learners- are advanced. In addition to the linguistic elements described above, this part also includes a presentation of certain key concept mentioned in our work; they are of didactic order; we quote of them those of error, interference, transfer, etc. The second part is devoted to error analysis made by the learners concerning modals, verbo-temporal expressions in their written productions of argumentative texts. This part starts with a description of the noticed errors. Then, a phase of research of the possible origins of these errors is considered in order to try to put forward certain didactic suggestions likely to improve the mastery of the mode, tense and aspect in French by the Tunisian Arabic-speaking learners in the framework of textual production, only that framework that is able to implement all the complexity of the verbal. We keep the third and the last part for some didactic suggestions. Also, this part does comprise an analysis of the new Tunisian manuals, resulting from the last reform of French teaching. It also includes a didactic sequence carrying in particular the writing of an argumentative text and including certain zones of resistance noted at the analysis phase.

Cette thèse s’inscrit dans le cadre du projet "Petits drones dans le vent" porté par le centre ONERA de Lille. Ce projet vise à utiliser le drone comme "capteur du vent" pour gérer un quadcopter UAV dans des conditions aérologiques perturbées en utilisant une prédiction du champ de vent. Dans ce contexte, le but de la thèse est de faire du quadcopter un capteur de vent pour fournir des informations locales afin de mettre à jour le système de navigation. Grâce à l’estimation du vent à bord en temps réel, le quadcopter peut calculer une planification de trajectoire évitant les zones dangereuses et le contrôle de trajectoire correspondant basé sur une cartographie existante et doté des informations relatives au concernant le comportement aérodynamique de l’écoulement d’air à proximité des obstacles. Ainsi, les résultats de cette thèse, dont les objectifs principaux portent sur l’estimation du vent instantanée et le contrôle de position, seront fusionnés avec une autre étude traitant de la planification de trajectoire. Un problème important est que les capteurs de pression, tels que l’aéroclinomètre et le tube de Pitot, ne sont pas facilement utilisables à bord des véhicules à voilure tournante car l’entrée des rotors interfère avec le flux atmosphérique et les capteurs LIDAR légers généralement ne sont pas disponibles. Une autre approche pour estimer le vent consiste à mettre en œuvre un logiciel d’estimation (ou un capteur intelligent). Dans cette thèse, trois estimateurs de ce type sont développés en utilisant l’approche du mode glissant, basée sur un modèle de drone adéquat et des mesures disponibles sur le quadcopter et sur des systèmes de position de suivi inertiel. Nous nous intéressons ensuite au contrôle de la trajectoire également par mode glissant en considérant le modèle non linéaire du quadcopter. Nous étudions par ailleurs de façon encore assez préliminaire une solution alternative fondée sur la commande H, en considérant le modèle linéarisé pour différents points d’équilibre en fonction de la vitesse du vent. Les algorithmes de contrôle et d’estimation sont strictement basés sur le modèle détaillé du quadcopter, qui met en évidence l’influence du vent / This thesis is part of the project "Small drones in the wind" carried by the ONERA center of Lille. This project aims to use the drone as a "wind sensor" to manage a UAV quadrotor in disturbed wind conditions using wind field prediction. In this context, the goal of the thesis is to make the quadrotor a wind sensor to provide local information to update the navigation system. With real-time on-board wind estimation, the quadrotor can compute a trajectory planning avoiding dangerous areas and the corresponding trajectory control, based on anexisting cartography and information on the aerodynamic behavior of airflow close to obstacles. Thus, the results of this thesis, whose main objectives are to estimate instant wind and position control, will be merged with another study dealing with trajectory planning. An important problem is that pressure sensors, such as the aeroclinometer and the Pitot tube, are not usable in rotary-wing vehicles because rotors air inflow interferes with the atmospheric flow and lightweight LIDAR sensors generally are not available. Another approach to estimate the wind is to implement an estimation software (or an intelligent sensor). In this thesis, three estimators are developed using the sliding mode approach, based on an adequate drone model, available measurements on the quadrotor and inertial tracking position systems. We are then interested in the control of the trajectory also by sliding mode considering the nonlinear model of the quadrotor. In addition, we are still studying quite an early alternative solution based on the H control, considering the linearized model for different equilibrium points as a function of the wind speed. The control and estimation algorithms are strictly based on the detailed model of the quadrotor, which highlights the influence of the wind

Déterminer la durée de vie d'une pièce sous excitation vibratoire est l'un des enjeux majeurs dans l'ingénierie mécanique. Afin de donner une estimation fiable de la durée de vie, un calcul correct de champ de contrainte, qui est fortement lié à la forme et l'amplitude modale est obligatoire. Cependant, le calcul de réponse d'une structure assemblée est difficile, surtout avec la présence de frottement sec aux interfaces de liaisons qui entraîne un amortissement non linéaire. La recherche de la thèse commence par une identification phénoménologique de l'amortissement induit par le frottement sec avec 3 modèles analytiques, notamment la plaque sandwich, la rotule frottante et la plaque von Kármán. Après la caractérisation de l'amortissement structural au 1er et 2ème ordre, les influences des paramètres comme la pression de serrage, le rapport d'épaisseurs ainsi que le nombre de soudures sont analysés. La deuxième partie des travaux traite les problèmes d'amortissement avec une géométrie de dimension finie. La plaque de von Kármán est reprise dans l'étude et une méthode hybride de différences finies et d'éléments finis est adopté pour résoudre le couplage entre la flexion et les efforts internes. Une attention particulière est portée à la notion de modes non linéaires dans le cas de la plaque von Kármán. Les conditions nécessitant l'introduction de modes non linéaires sont identifiées. Le champ de force fictif qui est proposé dans l'étude sur la plaque von Kármán est ensuite introduit dans le cas de la plaque sandwich. Puis la propagation de glissement et l'influence de champ fictif sont étudiées. Afin de vérifier les phénomènes trouvés dans les études théoriques, une installation expérimentale est conçue et montée pour l'amortissement structural au premier ordre. Dans la dernière partie qui est basée sur les observations faites dans les études précédentes, une méthode de calcul de l'amortissement dans un environnement industriel est proposée. Cette méthode permet de donner un amortissement pour chaque mode isolé. / The determination of a component's lifetime under vibrational excitation is one of the most difficult challenges in mechanical engineering. In order to provide a reliable estimation of lifetime, a correct calculation of stress field, which depends on the modal form and its amplitude, is needed. However, the vibrational response calculation on an assembled structure is not easy, especially with the nonlinear structural damping induced by frictional contact surface. The research in the current thesis starts from the phenomenological identification of damping with the help of 3 analytical models, in particular the sandwich plate, rotational joint and von Karman plate. Structural damping of 1st and 2nd order are identified. The influence of parameters like clamping pressure, thickness ratio and number of welding points are also analyzed. The second part of the research focuses on problems with finite dimensions. The von Karman plate serves as the subject of the study and a hydride method which combines FDM and FEM is proposed to solve the coupling between defection and in-plane force field. A special attention is paid to nonlinear mode theory, the conditions under which the nonlinear mode is necessary are identified. The fictive force field proposed in the study of von Kármán plate is then applied to the sandwich plate model. The slipping's propagation as well as the influence of fictive force field are studied. To verify the existence of the found phenomena in the previous studies, an experimental setup is designed and mounted for the 1st order structural damping. In the last part of the research, which is based on the observations previously obtained from academic models, a calculation method of friction-induced damping in structures with complex geometries is proposed for the application in the industrial environment. This methods enables the estimation of damping for each isolated mode.