<p>The study of ongoing mergers is vital to understanding how intense star bursts are triggered, and how luminous infrared galaxies and ultra luminous infrared galaxies are formed. The Antennae (NGC 4038/39), at a distance of only 24.9 Mpc, represents the nearest example of a major merger between two gas rich spirals and provides us with a unique laboratory for studying molecular gas and star formation. I have obtained two fully sampled observations of the Antennae using the Herschel SPIRE Fourier Transform Spectrometer which I have supplemented with JCMT CO J = 3 − 2 observations. I detect CO, CI and NII emission throughout both the overlap region and the nucleus of NGC 4038. I measured the integrated intensity of the CO J = 4−3 to 8−7 and find that the overlap region is brighter for all but the J = 4 − 3 line. I find that, in the nucleus of NGC 4038, the CO spectral line energy distribution peaks at the 4−3 transition, while in the overlap region it peaks at the 3−2 transition. I modelled the CO emission using the non-local thermal equilibrium radiative transfer code RADEX coupled with a Bayesian likelihood code. I find a warm (Tkin > 600K) lower density (nH2 ∼ 200cm−3) component of molecular gas in the nucleus of NGC 4038, and similarly in the overlap region (Tkin > 600 K, nH2 ∼ 300cm−3) and find widespread evidence for multiple components of molecular gas throughout the system. These warm components in both regions correspond to ~ 1% of the total molecular gas. I find no evidence of x-ray dominated regions, cosmic rays or turbulent heating being the primary source of heating throughout the galaxy, while photodissociation regions or supernova and stellar winds may be the primary source of heating throughout the galaxy.</p> / Master of Science (MSc)

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Stars form via the gravitational collapse of molecular clouds during which time the protostellar object contracts by over seven orders of magnitude. If all the angular momentum present in the natal cloud was conserved during collapse, stars would approach rotational velocities rapid enough to tear themselves apart within just a few Myr. In contrast to this, observations of pre-main sequence rotation rates are relatively slow (∼ 1 − 15 days) indicating that significant quantities of angular momentum must be removed from the star. I use observations of fully convective pre-main sequence stars in two well-studied, nearby regions of star formation (namely the Orion Nebula Cluster and Taurus-Auriga) to determine the removal rate of stellar angular momentum. I find the accretion disc-hosting stars to be rotating at a slower rate and contain less specific angular momentum than the disc-less stars. I interpret this as indicating a period of accretion disc-regulated angular momentum evolution followed by near-constant rotational evolution following disc dispersal. Furthermore, assuming that the age spread inferred from the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram constructed for the star forming region is real, I find that the removal rate of angular momentum during the accretion-disc hosting phase to be more rapid than that expected from simple disc-locking theory whereby contraction occurs at a fixed rotation period. This indicates a more efficient process of angular momentum removal must operate, most likely in the form of an accretion-driven stellar wind or outflow emanating from the star-disc interaction. The initial circumstellar envelope that surrounds a protostellar object during the earliest stages of star formation is rotationally flattened into a disc as the star contracts. An effective viscosity, present within the disc, enables the disc to evolve: mass accretes inwards through the disc and onto the star while momentum migrates outwards, forcing the outer regions of the disc to expand. I used spatially resolved submillimetre detections of the dust and gas components of protoplanetary discs, gathered from the literature, to measure the radial extent of discs around low-mass pre-main sequence stars of ∼ 1−10 Myr and probe their viscous evolution. I find no clear observational evidence for the radial expansion of the dust component. However, I find tentative evidence for the expansion ofthe gas component. This suggests that the evolution of the gas and dust components of protoplanetary discs are likely governed by different astrophysical processes. Observations of jets and outflows emanating from protostars and pre-main sequence stars highlight that it may also be possible to remove angular momentum from the circumstellar material. Using the sample of spatially resolved protoplanetary discs, I find no evidence for angular momentum removal during disc evolution. I also use the spatially resolved debris discs from the Submillimetre Common-User Bolometer Array-2 Observations of Nearby Stars survey to constrain the amount of angular momentum retained within planetary systems. This sample is compared to the protoplanetary disc angular momenta and to the angular momentum contained within pre-stellar cores. I find that significant quantities of angular momentum must be removed during disc formation and disc dispersal. This likely occurs via magnetic braking during the formation of the disc, via the launching of a disc or photo-evaporative wind, and/or via ejection of planetary material following dynamical interactions.

Depuis le milieu des années 1990, la taille des échantillons de galaxies situées à très grande distance (“redshift”) de nous, au tout début de la vie de l'univers a augmenté grace à la sensibilité croissante des télescopes optiques / infrarouge proche. Cependant, les propriétés des poussières continues dans ces galaxies sont mal connues en raison de l'absence d'observations profondes en infrarouge lointain et en sous-mm. Cette thèse explore les propriétés multi-longueur d'onde d'une population de galaxies observées ~ 2Gyr après le Big Bang. Notre échantillon comprend 22000 galaxies, et il a été sélectionné à partir de la discontinuité de Lyman. Nous utilisons une technique statistique, appelée analyse d'empilement, qui combine le signal provenant d'un grand nombre de sources individuellement non détectées dans le but d’ameliorer les limites de détection par rapport aux observations actuelles, à ces longueurs d'onde. Elle nous permet d'obtenir une distribution spectrale d’énergie complete de l’ultraviolet lointain à l’infrarouge lointain, et d'étudier la formation des étoiles et l'atténuation par la poussière sur ces galaxies. / Since the mid-1990s, the sample of galaxies in the early universe has been growing thanks to the increasing sensitivities in the Optical/NIR telescopes. However, their dust properties are poorly known due to the lack of deep far-infrared or sub-mm observations. This thesis explores the multi-wavelength properties of a population of galaxies observed ~2Gyr after the Big Bang. Our sample includes 22000 galaxies, and it has been selected by the classical U-dropout or Lyman Break technique. We use a statistical technique, called stacking analysis, that combines the signal from a large number of sources to lower the detection limits on the current long wavelengths observations. It allows us to obtain data over the full FUV-to-FIR spectral domain, and study the star formation and dust attenuation of these galaxies.

Context. The structure of the inner parts of Be star disks (≲ 20 stellar radii) is well explained by the viscous decretion disk (VDD) model, which is able to reproduce the observable properties of most of the objects studied so far. The outer parts, on the other hand, are not observationally well-explored, as they are observable only at radio wavelengths. A steepening of the spectral slope somewhere between infrared and radio wavelengths was reported for several Be stars that were previously detected in the radio, but a convincing physical explanation for this trend has not yet been provided. Aims. We test the VDD model predictions for the extended parts of a sample of six Be disks that have been observed in the radio to address the question of whether the observed turndown in the spectral energy distribution (SED) can be explained in the framework of the VDD model, including recent theoretical development for truncated Be disks in binary systems. Methods. We combine new multi-wavelength radio observations from the Karl. G. Jansky Very Large Array (JVLA) and Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) with previously published radio data and archival SED measurements at ultraviolet, visual, and infrared wavelengths. The density structure of the disks, including their outer parts, is constrained by radiative transfer modeling of the observed spectrum using VDD model predictions. In the VDD model we include the presumed effects of possible tidal influence from faint binary companions. Results. For 5 out of 6 studied stars, the observed SED shows strong signs of SED turndown between far-IR and radio wavelengths. A VDD model that extends to large distances closely reproduces the observed SEDs up to far IR wavelengths, but fails to reproduce the radio SED. Using a truncated VDD model improves the fit, leading to a successful explanation of the SED turndown observed for the stars in our sample. The slope of the observed SEDs in the radio is however not well reproduced by disks that are simply cut off at a certain distance. Rather, some matter seems to extend beyond the truncation radius, where it still contributes to the observed SEDs, making the spectral slope in the radio shallower. This finding is in agreement with our current understanding of binary truncation from hydrodynamical simulations, in which the disk does extend past the truncation radius. Therefore, the most probable cause for the SED turndown is the presence of binary companions that remain undetected for most of our sources.

Les spectres de rotation de anti- et gauche-normal-butyronitrile, mesurés au laboratoire jusqu'à 506 GHz ont été analysés pour obtenir un jeu de paramètres moléculaires précis pour l'état fondamental de vibration et cinq vibrations de faible énergie de chaque conformère. L'objectif est de pouvoir fournir les meilleures prévisions possibles pour la radioastronomie. Un total d'environ 15000 raies a été utilisé pour l'analyse. Des paramètres améliorés ont été déterminés pour v30 = 1, v30 = 2, v18 = 1, v29 = 1, pour le conformère anti, et v30 = 1, v30 = 2, v28 = 1, v29 = 1, pour le conformère gauche. Des paramètres ont été déterminés pour la première fois pour v18 = v30 = 1 du conformère anti et v29 = v30 = 1 du conformère gauche. Des preuves ont été trouvées pour un couplage des vibrations pour certains transitions supérieures à 380 GHz. Le couplage entre v18 = 1 et v30 = 2 du conformère anti a été bien caractérisé. Certaines raies montrent aussi un dédoublement dû à la rotation interne qui ne devrait pas être résolu dans les spectres astronomiques. / Laboratory measured rotational spectra of anti- and gauche-normal-propyl cyanide up to 506 GHz have been analyzed to obtain a precise set of molecular parameters for the ground state and five low-lying vibrational states of each conformer. The objective is to be able to make best possible predictions for radio-astronomy. In total around 15000 lines have been included in the analysis. Improved parameters have been determined for v30 = 1, v30 = 2, v18 = 1, v29 = 1, for the anti conformer, and v30 = 1, v30 = 2, v28 = 1, v29 = 1, for the gauche conformer. Parameters are derived for the first time for v18 = v30 = 1 of the anti conformer and v29 = v30 = 1 of the gauche conformer. Evidence has been found for vibrational coupling for some transitions above 380 GHz. The coupling between v18 = 1 and v30 = 2 of the anti conformer has been well characterized. Internal rotation splitting is also observed but not expected to be resolved in astronomical spectra.

Fourier transform spectroscopy (FTS) is one of the premier ways to collect source information through emitted radiation. It is so named because the principal measurement technique involves the analysis of spectra determined from the Fourier transform of a time-domain interference pattern. Given options in the field, many space- and ground-based instruments have selected Fourier transform spectrometers for their measurements. The Herschel Space Observatory, launched on May 14, 2009, has three on-board instruments. One, SPIRE, comprises a FTS paired with bolometer detector arrays. SCUBA-2 (Submillimetre Common User Bolometer Array) and FTS-2 have recently been commissioned and will be mounted within the collecting dish of the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope by Fall, 2010. The use of FTS in these two observatories will be examined. While work towards each project is independently useful, the thesis is bound by the commonality between the two, as each seeks similar answers from vastly different viewpoints. / xvii, 123 leaves : ill. (some col.) ; 29 cm

During the creation of any concrete floor the concrete needs to be grinded down from it's very rough newly poured form to a more usable floor surface. Concrete floor grinding is very special in that the work area is often immensely large while the height difference on the surface is incredibly small, in-fact the the largest local difference of the surface from a peek to a valley during the grinding process is submillimeter and goes down to micrometer scale. Today's methods for measuring concrete surfaces are very few and all output one dimensional profiles of the surface in very time consuming processes which makes them unsuitable for real-time analysis of the surfaces during the grinding process. Because of this, the effectiveness of the work is dependent on the experience and intuition of the operator of the grinding machine as they have to make the decision of when to move on to the next step in the grinding process. Therefore it is desirable to create a better method for concrete surface measurement that can measure big areas in a short period of time. In this project a structured light method using sinusoidal phase shifting is implemented and evaluated with an easily movable setup that can measure the height of a concrete surface over an area. The method works by encoding the surface with a phase using a projector and analysing how the phase encoding warps when imaging it from an angle. By triangulation this can be made into a height map of the measured area. The end results show that the method is promising for this application and can detect the submillimeter differences. However, more suitable hardware and a more reliable calibration procedure are required to move this prototype towards a more practical measuring device.

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