The two-photon decay in nuclei has been formally theorized for many years and attempted to be measured on numerous occasions. The special case of a 0 + → 0 + transition in nuclei was examined for certain isotopes, and a branching ratio for the two-photon decay determined for each isotopes. Measurements of the branching ratio in nuclei other than this special case had so far proven unsuccessful. Motivated to find the two-photon branching ratio in a case where the transition competes with the single photon transition, we study the 11/2 − 137 Ba isomer. The experiment was performed at the Technische Universität Darmstadt using the available LaBr 3 scintillation detectors. We first study the absorption of various gamma energies by lead and compare the resulting values to a GEANT4 simulation. With an ideal value for lead shield thickness, the experimental setup is built in order to obtain a high two-photon count rate, while suppressing direct Compton scattering between detector pairs and suppressing other background interference. In order to suppress the background, plastic scintillators were placed atop the experimental setup. To treat the daunting level of random coincidences measured with this setup, fine energy and time gates were placed on the processed events in order to limit observation to the region of interest. Throughout the experiment, three different detector pair angles were successfully examined: 72 ◦ , 120 ◦ , and 144 ◦ . With these three angles a partial representation of the angular distribution of the two-photon decay is observed. The branching ratios were measured to be 1.56(23)·10 −6 , 0.55(22)·10 −6 , and 0.70(18)·10 −6 for the angles of 72 ◦ , 120 ◦ , and 144 ◦ respectively, with the values of 72 ◦ and 144 ◦ recorded in Ref.[1]. This experiment therefore shows it is possible to obtain a value for the two-photon branching ratio in the 11/2 − excited state of 137 Ba . A precise determination of this value, and for that of other nuclei, might contribute to solve current fundamental open problems such as restricting the parameters of the equation of state, or accurately determining neutron skin thickness.

Quantum information science has shown that computers which exploit the quantum nature of particles, namely quantum computers, can outperform contemporary computers in some computational tasks. The fundamental building blocks of a quantum computer are quantum logical gates and quantum bits (qubits). Previous research has shown that the optical approach to quantum computing is promising. However, linear optical quantum computing (LOQC) schemes require a huge amount of resource, which makes large scale LOQC impractical, and hence there have been renewed interests in nonlinear optical quantum computing schemes, where less resource is required. The performance of these quantum gates depends on the properties of the nonlinear media. However, requirements on some of the properties for high performance quantum gates are not fully known. This thesis intends to bridge this gap of knowledge and examines the necessary conditions on several types optical nonlinearities that are common in two-qubit quantum gates schemes. These types of nonlinearities are, namely two-photon absorption, $\chi^{(2)}$ nonlinearity and $\chi^{(3)}$ cross-Kerr nonlinearity. The two-photon absorption based quantum Zeno gate is modeled in this thesis. It is shown that for practical absorbers, the photon loss significantly lowers the quantum fidelity of the Zeno gate. Nevertheless, this thesis proposes to use the Zeno gate for fusing optical cluster states. With the best theoretical estimate of single photon loss in the absorbers, the Zeno gate can outperform linear optical schemes. This thesis also proposes to embed the Zeno gate in the teleportation-type of two-qubit gate, namely GC-Zeno gate, such that the success rate of the gate can be traded off for higher gate fidelity. The effect of some mode matching error and detector inefficiency on the GC-Zeno gate are also considered here. It is shown that the photon loss requirement as well as the mode matching requirement are both stringent for having a fault tolerant GC-Zeno gate. This thesis models some of the properties of a $\chi^{(3)}$ optical medium and explores how they affect the fidelity of the cross-Kerr nonlinearity based quantum gate. This thesis shows that for a cross-Kerr medium with fast time response but negligible wave dispersion, the medium would induce spectral entanglement between the input photons and this significantly lowers the fidelity of the quantum gate. Nevertheless, when the dispersion has a stronger effect than the time response, and if phase noise is negligible, it is possible to achieve a quantum gate with high fidelity. However, the noise is actually significant, and this thesis suggests that spectral filtering can be applied to prohibit the occurrence of the noise. The requirements on employing optical $\chi^{(2)}$ nonlinearity for quantum computing are also examined. This study models the spectral effects of a $\chi^{(2)}$ medium on its efficiency. It is shown in this thesis that since the Hamiltonian of the medium does not commute at different times, the unitary operation should be modeled by a Dyson series, which leads to undesired spectral entanglement that lowers the efficiency of the medium. However, in the case of periodical poling, the unitary operation can be modeled by a Taylor series, where under some phase matching conditions, the medium can have a high efficiency. Furthermore, this thesis proposes a Bell measurement scheme and a quantum gate scheme based on $\chi^{(2)}$ nonlinearity that can always outperform linear optics even when the nonlinearity strength is weak. In the case of sufficiently strong nonlinearity, a quantum gate with high success rate can be achieved. In summary, this thesis models some of the properties of two-photon absorbers, $\chi^{(2)}$ nonlinearity and $\chi^{(3)}$ nonlinearity, and shows that it is possible to achieve the conditions required for high performance quantum gates, however these conditions are experimentally challenging to meet.

Quantum information science has shown that computers which exploit the quantum nature of particles, namely quantum computers, can outperform contemporary computers in some computational tasks. The fundamental building blocks of a quantum computer are quantum logical gates and quantum bits (qubits). Previous research has shown that the optical approach to quantum computing is promising. However, linear optical quantum computing (LOQC) schemes require a huge amount of resource, which makes large scale LOQC impractical, and hence there have been renewed interests in nonlinear optical quantum computing schemes, where less resource is required. The performance of these quantum gates depends on the properties of the nonlinear media. However, requirements on some of the properties for high performance quantum gates are not fully known. This thesis intends to bridge this gap of knowledge and examines the necessary conditions on several types optical nonlinearities that are common in two-qubit quantum gates schemes. These types of nonlinearities are, namely two-photon absorption, $\chi^{(2)}$ nonlinearity and $\chi^{(3)}$ cross-Kerr nonlinearity. The two-photon absorption based quantum Zeno gate is modeled in this thesis. It is shown that for practical absorbers, the photon loss significantly lowers the quantum fidelity of the Zeno gate. Nevertheless, this thesis proposes to use the Zeno gate for fusing optical cluster states. With the best theoretical estimate of single photon loss in the absorbers, the Zeno gate can outperform linear optical schemes. This thesis also proposes to embed the Zeno gate in the teleportation-type of two-qubit gate, namely GC-Zeno gate, such that the success rate of the gate can be traded off for higher gate fidelity. The effect of some mode matching error and detector inefficiency on the GC-Zeno gate are also considered here. It is shown that the photon loss requirement as well as the mode matching requirement are both stringent for having a fault tolerant GC-Zeno gate. This thesis models some of the properties of a $\chi^{(3)}$ optical medium and explores how they affect the fidelity of the cross-Kerr nonlinearity based quantum gate. This thesis shows that for a cross-Kerr medium with fast time response but negligible wave dispersion, the medium would induce spectral entanglement between the input photons and this significantly lowers the fidelity of the quantum gate. Nevertheless, when the dispersion has a stronger effect than the time response, and if phase noise is negligible, it is possible to achieve a quantum gate with high fidelity. However, the noise is actually significant, and this thesis suggests that spectral filtering can be applied to prohibit the occurrence of the noise. The requirements on employing optical $\chi^{(2)}$ nonlinearity for quantum computing are also examined. This study models the spectral effects of a $\chi^{(2)}$ medium on its efficiency. It is shown in this thesis that since the Hamiltonian of the medium does not commute at different times, the unitary operation should be modeled by a Dyson series, which leads to undesired spectral entanglement that lowers the efficiency of the medium. However, in the case of periodical poling, the unitary operation can be modeled by a Taylor series, where under some phase matching conditions, the medium can have a high efficiency. Furthermore, this thesis proposes a Bell measurement scheme and a quantum gate scheme based on $\chi^{(2)}$ nonlinearity that can always outperform linear optics even when the nonlinearity strength is weak. In the case of sufficiently strong nonlinearity, a quantum gate with high success rate can be achieved. In summary, this thesis models some of the properties of two-photon absorbers, $\chi^{(2)}$ nonlinearity and $\chi^{(3)}$ nonlinearity, and shows that it is possible to achieve the conditions required for high performance quantum gates, however these conditions are experimentally challenging to meet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 113-123).

Neste trabalho usamos pulsos de femtossegundos na fabricação de estruturas poliméricas em escala microscópica, através da técnica de fotopolimerização via absorção de dois fótons. Graças ao confinamento espacial da polimerização, resultante do processo de absorção de dois fótons, este método permite a fabricação de microestruturas tridimensionais complexas, com alta resolução, visando diversas aplicações tecnológicas, de fotônica até biologia. Inicialmente, desenvolvemos a técnica de fotopolimerização via absorção de dois fótons, desde a implantação da montagem óptica até a confecção dos sistemas de movimentação e controle do posicionamento do feixe laser. Através da fabricação e caracterização de microestruturas, produzidas em resinas acrílicas, o sistema foi aperfeiçoado permitindo a produção de microestruturas da pordem de 30um com razoável resolução espacial. Uma vez que a maior parte as microestruturas reportadas na literatura são elementos passivos, ou seja, suas propriedades ópticas não podem ser controladas por meios externos, numa segunda etapa deste projeto produzimos microestruturas opticamente ativas. Neste caso, a microfabricação foi feita em resinas acrílicas dopadas Rodamina B, exibindo, portanto, fluorescência quando excitadas com luz de comprimento de onda em torno de 540nm. Finalmente, visando a produção eficiente de estruturas em escala milimétrica para aplicações biológicas, implementamos também um sistema de fotopolomerização via absorção de um fóton. / In this work we used femtosecond pulses to fabricate polymeric structures at microscopic scale, by using the two-photon photopolymerization technique. Due to the spatial confinement of the polymerization, provided by the two-photon absorption, this method allows for the fabrication of complex three-dimensional microstructures, with high resolution, aiming to several technological applications, from photonics to biology. Initially, we developed the two-photon polimerization technique, from the optical setup to the mechanical systems to control the movement and the positioning of the laser beam. Through the fabrication and characterization os microestrutures, produced in acrylic resin, the apparatus was improved, allowing the fabriation of 30-um microstructures with reasonable spatial resolution. Since most the report in the literature are passive elements that is, their optical properties cannot be altered by any external means, in a second stage of this project we fabricated optical active microstructures. In this case, the microfabrication was carried out in acrylic resins doped with Rodamine B, exhibiting, consenquently, fluorescence when excited with light at 540nm. Finally, in order to eficiently produce milimetric structures for biological applications, we also implemented a one-photon polimerization setup.

Através da absorção de um e de dois fótons estudamos as diferentes transições do íon \'Gd POT.+3\' e GGG. Utilizando técnicas espectroscópicas com laser pulsado e laser contínuo, analisamos a influência do campo cristalino sobre o íon. Estes resultados estão em concordância com as previsões advindas da teoria de grupo. A partir da análise dos espectros de luminescência das amostras de GdAl\'O IND.3\', conseguimos detectar pequenos traços de impurezas nas mesmas. Não conseguimos detectar nenhuma anomalia nos espectros obtidos, de modo a não acreditarmos na existência de alguma interação Gadolínio - Galdoíno, acima da temperatura de transição de fase. Laser de corante contínuo de alta resolução, laser de corante pulsado foram construídos para a realização dos experimentos. Também desenvolvemos os equipamentos eletrônicos envolvidos. / The different transitions of \'Gd POT.3+\' ion in samples of GdAl\'O IND.3\' and GGG were studied by means of the absorption of one and two photons. The crystalline field influence an the ion was studied by using spectroscopic techniques with pulsed laser as well as continuous laser. These results are in agreement with the group theory prediction. From the luminescence spectrum of this sample little impurities aspects in the GdA1\'O IND.3\' sample were detected. No anomaly was detected in the spectra obtained so that we believed there is no \'Gd POT.3+\'-\'Gd POT.3+\' interaction above the phase transition temperature. High resolution continuous dye laser and pulsed die laser were built up to carry out the experiments. The electronic equipment used in the experiment was developed by us.

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(医学) / 甲第22301号 / 医博第4542号 / 新制||医||1040(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院医学研究科医学専攻 / (主査)教授 渡邊 直樹, 教授 椛島 健治, 教授 林 康紀 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Medical Science / Kyoto University / DFAM

京都大学 / 新制・論文博士 / 博士(医学) / 乙第13401号 / 論医博第2225号 / 新制||医||1051(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院医学研究科医学専攻 / (主査)教授 長船 健二, 教授 渡邊 直樹, 教授 江藤 浩之 / 学位規則第4条第2項該当 / Doctor of Medical Science / Kyoto University / DFAM

L’avènement de la microscopie STED (Stimulated Emission Depletion) a bouleversé le domaine desneurosciences du au fait que beaucoup de structures neuronale, tels que les épines dendritiques, lesaxones ou les processus astrocytaires, ne peuvent pas être correctement résolu en microscopiephotonique classique. La microscopie 2-photon est une technique d’imagerie photonique très largement utilisée dans le domaine des neurosciences car elle permet d’imager les événements dynamique en profondeur dans le tissu cérébral, offrant un excellent sectionnement optique et une meilleure profondeur de pénétration. Cependant, la résolution spatiale de cette approche est limitée autour de 0.5 μm, la rendant inappropriée pour étudier les détails morphologiques des neurones et synapses. Le but de mon travail de thèse était à A) développer un microscope qui permet d'améliorer l'imagerie 2-photon en la combinant avec la microscopie STED et B) démontrer son potentiel pour l'imagerie à l'échelle nanométrique de processus neuronaux dynamiques dans des tranches de cerveau aigus et in vivo. Le nouveau microscope permet d'obtenir une résolution spatiale latérale de ~ 50 nm à des profondeurs d'imagerie de ~ 50 μm dans du tissu cérébral vivant. Il fonctionne avec des fluorophores verts, y compris les protéines fluorescentes communes telles que la GFP et YFP, offrant le contraste de deux couleurs basé sur la détection spectrale et linéaire ‘unmixing’. S’agissant d’un microscope droit, utilisant un objectif à immersion ayant une grande distance de travail, nous avons pu incorporer des techniques électrophysiologiques comme patch-clamp et ajouter une plateforme pour l'imagerie in vivo. J’ai utilise ce nouveau microscope pour imager des processus neuronaux fins et leur dynamique à l’échelle nanométrique dans différent types de préparations et des régions différentes du cerveau. J’ai pu révéler des nouvelles caractéristiques morphologique des dendrites et épines. En outre, j'ai exploré différentes stratégies de marquage pour pouvoir utiliser la microscopie STED pour imager le trafic des protéines et de leur dynamique à l'échelle nanométrique dans des tranches de cerveau. / The advent of STED microscopy has created a lot of excitement in the field of neuroscience becausemany important neuronal structures, such as dendritic spines, axonal shafts or astroglial processes,cannot be properly resolved by regular light microscopy techniques. Two-photon fluorescence microscopy is a widely used imaging technique in neuroscience because it permits imaging dynamic events deep inside light-scattering brain tissue, providing high optical sectioning and depth penetration. However, the spatial resolution of this approach is limited to around half a micron, and hence is inadequate for revealing many morphological details of neurons and synapses. The aim of my PhD work was to A) develop a microscope that improves on two-photon imaging by combining it with STED microscopy and to B) demonstrate its potential for nanoscale imaging of dynamic neural processes in acute brain slices and in vivo. The new microscope achieves a lateral spatial resolution of ~50 nm at imaging depths of ~50 μm in living brain slices. It works with green fluorophores, including common fluorescent proteins like GFP and YFP, offering two-color contrast based on spectral detection and linear unmixing. Because of its upright design using a long working distance water-immersion objective, it was possible to incorporate electrophysiological techniques like patch-clamping or to add a stage for in vivo imaging. I have used the new microscope to image fine neural processes and their nanoscale dynamics in different experimental preparations and brain regions, revealing new and interesting morphological features of dendrites and spines. In addition, I have explored different labeling strategies to be able to use STED microscopy for visualizing protein trafficking and dynamics at the nanoscale in brain slices.

Intensive demands have arisen to characterize nonlinear optical properties of materials for applications involving optical limiters, waveguide switches and bistable light switches. The technique of Pulse Delay Modulation is described which can monitor nonlinear changes in transmission with shot noise limited signal-to-noise ratios even in the presence of large background signals. The theoretical foundations of the experiment are presented followed by actual measurements of beam depletion due to second harmonic generation in a LiIO3 crystal and two-photon absorption in the semiconductor ZnSe. Sensitivity to polarization rotation arising from the Kerr Effect in carbon disulfide, saturable absorber relaxation in modelocking dyes and photorefractive effects in ZnSe are demonstrated. The sensitivity of Pulse Delay Modulation is combined with Fabry-Perot enhancement to allow the measurement of two-photon absorption in a 0.46pm thick interference filter spacer layer. Also included is a study of nonlinear optical limiting arising from dielectric breakdown in gases.