Rational magnetic flux surfaces in fusion (toroidal plasma confinement) devices can break the magnetic field lines and reconnect them in the form of magnetic islands. Formation of these magnetic islands can have a serious impact on the plasma confinement properties of the device. Islands can in general degrade the confinement by mixing up different regions of the plasma. However there has been experimental evidence of confinement improvement by island induced transport barriers, under certain conditions. Even though there are a large number of theoretical and experimental works on magnetic islands to date, there is clearly a paucity of convincing experimental understanding on the nature of behaviour of islands in plasma. This thesis reports detailed experimental studies conducted on the H-1NF heliac stellarator, to gain an in-depth understanding of magnetic islands and their influence in plasma confinement.¶ Work reported in this thesis can be mainly divided into three parts: (a) high resolution imaging of vacuum magnetic islands and flux surfaces of H-1NF, (b) accurate computer modeling of H-1NF magnetic geometry and (c) detailed experiments on magnetic islands in plasma configurations.¶ Electron-beam wire-tomography in the H-1NF has been used for the high resolution mapping of vacuum magnetic flux surfaces and islands. Point-to-point comparison of the mapping results with computer tracing, in conjunction with an image warping technique, has enabled systematic exploration of magnetic islands and surfaces of interest. A fast mapping technique has been developed, which significantly reduced the mapping time and made this technique suitable for mapping at higher magnetic fields.¶ Flux surface mapping has been carried out at various magnetic configurations and field strengths. The extreme accuracy of this technique has been exploited to understand the nature of error fields, by point-by-point matching with computer tracing results. This has helped in developing a best-fit computer model for H-1NF magnetic configurations, which can predict rotational transform correct to three decimal places. Results from plasma experiments on magnetic configuration studies are best explained by the new model.¶ Experiments with low order magnetic islands in plasma configurations yielded some new results. It has been observed that the low order magnetic islands (m = 2) near the core of the plasma serve as pockets of improved confinement region under favourable conditions. This results in significant profile modifications including enhancement of the radial electric field near the core to a large positive value. The characteristics of islands are found to be dependent on the plasma collisionality and the island width.¶ Experiments with a magnetic configuration which exhibits no vacuum islands, but the core rotational transform very close to low order rational value, show a spontaneous transition of the radial electric field near the core to a large positive value (nearly 5 kV/m), with a strong electric field shear (nearly 700 kV/m2) and localised improvement in confinement, during the discharge. Evidence indicates that the transition is driven by the excitation of low order magnetic islands near the axis during the plasma discharge, due to the modification of rotational transform profile by toroidal plasma currents. The situation is similar to the Core Electron-Root Confinement (CERC) observed during high temperature ECH plasma discharges on other helical devices. This result provides an experimental evidence for the hypothesis that the threshold conditions for observing CERC can be reduced by exciting magnetic islands near the core of the plasma.

The goal of this thesis is to derive an accurate confidence interval after a sequential test with Christmas tree boundaries. We shall begin with an approximate pivot based on signed-root transformation, then apply the procedure of Weng and Woodroofe [2000] to derive an improved confidence interval. Accuracy of the theoretical result is investigated by simulations.

Consider sequential trials comparing two treatments with binary responses. The goal is to derive accurate confidence sets for the treatment difference and the individual success probabilities of the two treatments. We shall begin with the signed-root transformation as a pivot and then apply the approximate theory of Weng and Woodroofe [11] to form accurate confidence sets of these parameters. The explicit correction terms of the pivots are obtained. The simulation studies agree well with the theoretical results.

Thesis (M.D.S.)--University of Hong Kong, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 119-130) Also available in print.

Bibliography: leaves 149-173.

Bibliography: leaves 184-209. This thesis describes the occurence of natural, biologically based suppression of Rhizoctonia barepatch in a direct drilled system at Avon, South Australia. The supressive characteristics are transferable, removed by biocidal treatments, and active against increasing doses of R. solani AG-8, Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici and Fusarium graminearum. Disease severity and the viable population of Rhizoctonia are reduced in suppressive soil but the causal agent is still present. The microbial populations in suppressive and non-suppressive soil appear to differ both in their functioning and composition. The control strategy is developed through manipulation of the existing soil biota with farming practices.

Let E be a one-parameter family of elliptic curves over a number field. It is natural to expect the average root number of the curves in the family to be zero. All known counterexamples to this folk conjecture occur for families obeying a certain degeneracy condition. We prove that the average root number is zero for a large class of families of elliptic curves of fairly general type. Furthermore, we show that any non-degenerate family E has average root number 0, provided that two classical arithmetical conjectures hold for two homogeneous polynomials with integral coefficients constructed explicitly in terms of E.<br />The first such conjecture -- commonly associated with Chowla -- asserts the equidistribution of the parity of the number of primes dividing the integers represented by a polynomial. We prove the conjecture for homogeneous polynomials of degree 3.<br />The second conjecture used states that any non-constant homogeneous polynomial yields to a square-free sieve. We sharpen the existing bounds on the known cases by a sieve refinement and a new approach combining height functions, sphere packings and sieve methods.

Andrew E. Yagle and Bernard C. Levy. / Bibliography: leaves 8-9. / "July 1981." / NASA Ames Research Center Grant NASA/NGL-22-009-124

S.S. Sastry and C.A. Desoer. / Bibliography: leaf 3. / Caption title. "August, 1981." / Supported by NSF under Grant ENG-78-09032-A01 NASA Grant NGL-22-009-124

In-process Optical Coordinate Measuring Machine (OCMM) offers the potential of diagnosing in a timely manner variation sources that are responsible for product quality defects. Such a sensor system can help manufacturers improve product quality and reduce process downtime. Effective use of sensory data in diagnosing variation sources depends on the optimal design of a sensor system, which is often known as the problem of sensor placements. This thesis addresses coordinate sensor placement in diagnosing dimensional variation sources in assembly processes. Sensitivity indices of detecting process mean and variance components are defined as the design criteria and are derived in terms of process layout and sensor deployment information. Exchange algorithms, originally developed in the research of optimal experiment deign, are employed and revised to maximize the detection sensitivity. A sort-and-cut procedure is used, which remarkably improve the algorithm efficiency of the current exchange routine. The resulting optimal sensor layouts and its implications are illustrated in the specific context of a panel assembly process.