Small scale unmanned aircraft, such as quadrotors, that are quickly emerging as versatile tools for a wide range of applications including search and rescue, hazardous environment exploration, or just shooting great video, are known as micro air vehicles (MAVs). However, for millimeter scale vehicles with weights under 10 grams, conventional flight technologies become greatly inefficient and instead inspiration is drawn from biology. Flapping wing MAVs (FWMAVs) have been created based on insects and hummingbirds in an effort to emulate their extreme agility and ability to hover in place. FWMAVs possess unique capabilities in terms of maneuverability, small size, and ability to operate in dynamic environments that make them particularly well suited for environmental monitoring and swarm applications such as artificial crop pollination. Despite their advantages, significant challenges in fabrication, power, and control must be overcome in order to make FWMAVs a reliable platform. Current designs suffer from high mechanical complexity and often rely on off-board power, sensing, and control, which compromises their autonomy and limits practical applications. The goal of my research is to develop a simple FWMAV design that provides high efficiency and controllability. An efficient, simple, and controllable vehicle design is developed utilizing the principles of resonance, emulation of biological flight control, and under-actuation. A highly efficient, resonant actuator is achieved by attaching a spring in parallel to the output shaft of a commercial geared DC micro-motor. This actuator directly drives the wings of the vehicle, allowing them to be controlled precisely and independently. This direct control strategy emulates biology and differs from other FWMAV designs that utilize complicated transmissions to generate flapping from rotary motor output. Direct control of the wings allows for emulation of biological wing kinematics, resulting in control based on wing motion alone. Furthermore, under-actuation is employed to mimic the rotational motion of insect wings. A rotational joint is added between the motor and wing membrane such that the wing rotates passively in response to aerodynamic forces that are generated as the wing is driven. This design is realized in several stages, initial prototyping, simulation and development of the actuator and wings, then finally a control system is developed. First the system was modeled and improved experimentally in order to achieve lift off. Improvements to the actuator were realized through component variation and custom fabrication increasing torque and power density by 161.1% and 666.8% respectively compared to the gearmotor alone and increased the resonant operating frequency of the vehicle from 4 Hz to 23 Hz. Advances in wing fabrication allowed for flexible wings that increased translational lift production by 35.3%, aerodynamic efficiency by 41.3%, and the effective lift coefficient by 63.7% with dynamic twisting. A robust control architecture was then developed iteratively based on a date driven system model in order to increase flight time from 1 second (10 wing strokes) to over 10 seconds (230 wing strokes). The resulting design improves lift to weight by 166%, allowing for a payload capacity of approximately 8.7 g and offers the potential for fully autonomous operation with all necessary components included on-board. A thermal model for micro-motors was developed and tuned to accurately predict an upper limit of system operation of 41 seconds as well as to optimize a heatsink that increases operating time by 102.4%.

Une recherche bibliographique a permis de faire un état de l'art, d'une part des différents principespermettant de détecter le givre et d'autre part de l'application de matériaux magnétostrictifs à la mesure defaibles masses. La faisabilité et l’applicabilité de certains alliages amorphes et nanocristallins à la réalisationde capteurs de givre ont été démontrées.Suite à cet état de l'art, le principe de détection par résonateur magnétostrictif qui a été retenu, a faitl'objet d'une étude approfondie aboutissant à l'établissement d'un nouveau modèle analytique complet desrésonateurs magnétostrictifs sous forme de ruban. L'intérêt principal de ce modèle est la prise en compte depertes mécaniques et l'expression finale contenant la fonction de transfert complète entre les entrées et sortiesélectriques. Ainsi, la réponse en fréquence du modèle est vraiment similaire aux réponses expérimentales. Deplus, il apporte une explication aux retournements observés, pour certains harmoniques entre les fréquencesde résonance et d'antirésonance, pour lesquels l’origine n’avait pu être clairement identifiée.La mise en œuvre de ce nouveau modèle pour la caractérisation de rubans amorphes a montré qu'ilest possible de déterminer le coefficient de couplage à partir de la réponse en fréquence ainsi que le moduled'Young ou l'amortissement. On a donc pu tracer pour des rubans de 2605SC et 2826MB les évolutions avecle champ de polarisation des paramètres du résonateur. De l'évolution de ces paramètres, il est possible dereconstruire les courbes de magnétostriction d'un ruban, ce qui constitue actuellement une méthode decaractérisation.La mise en œuvre d'un prototype a permis de détecter du givre et ainsi de confirmer la faisabilité dela détection de givrage par ce moyen, mais les essais préliminaires qui sont très prometteurs n’ont puapporter une réponse quantitative du capteur soumis à un dépôt de givre. Des mesures utilisant des enceintesde givrage contrôlées en température et en hygrométrie constituent une première perspective. Par ailleurs, lesrésultats présentés dans ce manuscrit s’avèrent une bonne base pour la valorisation de ces travaux,notamment pour la réalisation d’un prototype de capteur, son conditionnement et sa mise en œuvre dans devraies conditions de givrage. / A review of literature allowed first to a state of the art of the different routes to detect the ice on theone hand and of the use of magnetostrictive materials to measure small masses. Both the feasibility andapplicability of metglasses and nanocrystalline alloys to frost resonating sensors have been clearlyestablished.The principle of magnetostrictive sensing resonator was developed and a new comprehensiveanalytical model of ribbonshaped magnetostrictive resonators was successfully achieved. The present modelincludes mechanical losses and the final expression contains the complete transfer function between the inputand output powers. Thus, the predicted frequency response of the model fairly fits to the experimental one.In addition, it clearly explains henceforth the reversals of some harmonic frequencies which occur from theresonance and antiresonance phenomena.The implementation of this new model for the characterization of amorphous ribbons showed thusthat it is now possible to well estimate the coupling coefficient from the frequency response and the Young'smodulus or damping. So we could draw developments with the bias field parameters of the resonator for2826MB and 2605SC amorphous ribbons. The evolution of these parameters allows the magnetostrictioncurves to be well established, that consists in a new characterization method.The implementation of a first prototype permits to detect frost, confirming thus the feasibility ofdetecting icing this way, but these promising preliminary tests could not bring quantitative data to model thefrost deposition on a resonating sensor. Measurements using pregnant icing controlled temperature andhumidity are a first perspective. Finally, it is important to emphasize that the present results appear as a goodsupport for the valorization of this study, especially to elaborate of a prototype sensor based onmagnetostrictive ribbons, its packaging and its implementation in in situ icing conditions.

Plasmon resonance associated with nanoparticles of gold can enable photothermal ablation of tissues or controlled drug release with exquisite temporal and spatial control. These technologies may support many applications of precision medicine. However, clinical implementations of these technologies will require new methods of intraoperative imaging and guidance. Near-infrared laser surgery is a prime example that relies on improved image guidance. Here we set forth applications of augmented microscopy in guiding surgical procedures employing plasmon resonant gold-coated liposomes. Absorption of near-infrared laser light is the first step in activation of various diagnostic and therapeutic functions of these novel functional nanoparticles. Therefore, we demonstrate examples of near-infrared visualization of the laser beam and gold-coated liposomes. The augmented microscope proves to be a promisingimage guidance platform for a range of image-guided medical procedures.

The work in this thesis falls roughly into three parts, which I characterise loosely as a developmental stage, an exploratory stage, and an attempt to contribute to understanding of the field. In the developmental stage, I have worked to design a variety of methods to create high-quality samples of various Iron Pnictide superconductors, to dope them with various chemicals and to characterise the resulting crystalline samples. I discuss in depth the signature of good quality crystals and the various experiments that they have been used in by myself and my collaborators. These processes are ongoing and will hopefully continue to contribute to my research group's capabilities. My exploratory work involves a detailed survey of one particular family, Sr(Fe1-xCox)2As2, as the level of Cobalt is varied, and the mapping of the phase diagram for the system. I have also made a comparison to the better-measured Barium analogue, and discuss the reasons for the differences in character between the two, most notably the lack of a splitting of the structural and magnetic transitions in the first species. I also discuss the effect of pressure, which can lead to superconductivity in lightly doped samples for very modest pressures; and annealing, which increases transition temperatures within samples, on a limited quantity of crystals. Finally, I attempt to contribute to the understanding of the field via a series of Resonant Ultrasound Spectroscopic experiments conducted by a collaborator on my crystals and analysed by me. I see distinct first-order transitions in the parent compounds, characterisable above the high-T structural transition within a Ginzburg-Landau pseudoproper ferroelastic scheme for a transition coupling weakly to strain but driven by another order parameter. My observations allow several statements about the symmetry of the order parameter and are suggestive of a non-magnetically driven structural transition. In the case of doped samples a much richer behavior is seen, with a broad transition and simultaneous relaxation of all elastic peaks and a broad temperature range of significant dispersion. The effect of the softening is seen far above TN and lends strong support to the family of models predicting such high-T fluctuations.

No description available.

No description available.

Les développements en information quantique nécessitent le contrôle et la manipulation d'états quantiques. Parmi les systèmes en physique du solide, les boîtes quantiques semiconductrices sont de bons candidats pour réaliser des bits quantiques. La taille nanométrique de ces objets conduit à un confinement spatial à trois dimensions des porteurs : le spectre d'énergie est discret comme celui d'un atome. Ces objets sont étudiés pour leurs propriétés optiques, et notamment pour l'émission de photons uniques et indiscernables, qui sont des états quantiques de la lumière. Le travail de cette thèse consiste à étudier des boîtes quantiques uniques d'InAs/GaAs excitées à la résonance de leur transition optique, à l'aide d'impulsions lumineuses picosecondes. Grâce à une géométrie unidimensionnelle en guide d'onde, il est possible de s'affranchir de la lumière diffusée du laser d'excitation, et d'observer la luminescence résonante des boîtes. On atteint alors le régime d'oscillations de Rabi qui permet d'inscrire dans la boîte une superposition cohérente du système à deux niveaux, c'est un bit quantique. Cependant, le couplage entre la boîte et son environnement modifie les propriétés de cohérence des boîtes quantiques, limitant la possibilité de réaliser des opérations sur les qubits. Deux phénomènes principaux de décohérence ont été modélisés : l'interaction avec les phonons longitudinaux acoustiques de la matrice environnante de la boîte et le couplage avec le mode électromagnétique. Nous avons enfin étudié la statistique d'émission de photons des boîtes quantiques, et nous montrons qu'elles constituent de bonnes sources de photons uniques indiscernables, à la demande. / Developments in quantum information require controlling and manipulating quantum bits. Among solid state emitters, semiconductor quantum dots seem promising to realize quantum bits. First, the nanometric size of those structures leads to the confinement of the carriers in the three directions of space, so that their energy spectrum becomes atom-like. Furthermore, they can easily be integrated into electronic and optic devices. Such structures are studied for their optical properties, especially the emission of single and indistinguishable photons, which are quantum states of light. In the present work InAs/GaAs quantum dots have been studied under resonant excitation with picosecond laser pulses. One-dimensional waveguiding geometry has been used to suppress the scattered excitation laser allowing the observation of a single dot resonant luminescence. The coupling between the laser and the dot leads to the Rabi oscillations regime which enables to address a coherent superposition of states in the two-level system, meaning a quantum bit. However, the coupling between the dot and its environment changes the coherence properties of the dots, limiting the time during which operations on the qubits are possible. Two main phenomena have been observed and studied: the interaction between the dots and the longitudinal acoustic phonons of the GaAs matrix and the coupling with the electromagnetic mode. Finally, the photon emission statistics of the quantum dots have been studied, showing that quantum dots are on demand good emitters of indistinguishable single photons.

This diploma thesis is focused on the LLC resonant power supply with power factor correction. The first part of the thesis is focused on a selection of a suitable controller for the control of this source. Here the emphasis is mainly on efficiency and EMC. The thesis also deals with the design of the scheme and the selection of suitable components. The thesis contains the design of the LLC power supply itself and also the power factor correction circuit - PFC.

This thesis deals with the design of a power converter for induction heating of iron components designed for a power of at least 2.5 kW. The induction furnace forms a series resonant LC circuit. The thesis contains a description and a design of individual parts of the converter, including wiring diagrams and a design of printed circuit boards. At the end of the work are then described the mechanical construction, the course of recovery and testing the operation of the inverter.

This Diploma thesis deals with the design of induction heating inverter. The main subject is optimalization for blacksmiths. There is described the designing procedure for power components and also designing of control part. Then prototype of 10 kW induction heater was made.