Physics Commons^™

Design Of A 5 Degree Of Freedom Kinematic Stage For The Dual Crystal Backlighter Imager Diagnostic, Nicholas Nguyen

Master's Theses

The National Ignition Facility (NIF) is home to the world’s most energetic laser. The facility is one of the leading centers in inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments to research and understand sustainable fusion energy. To fully document and understand the physics occurring during experiments, precise diagnostics are used for a wide range of purposes. One diagnostic, the crystal backlighter imager (CBI), allows for X-ray imaging of the target at late stages of its implosion.

The aim of this project was to increase the current capabilities of the CBI diagnostic with the addition of a second crystal. This thesis focuses on …

A Rotating Aperture Mask For Small Telescopes, Edward L. Foley

Master's Theses

Observing the dynamic interaction between stars and their close stellar neighbors is key to establishing the stars’ orbits, masses, and other properties. Our ability to visually discriminate nearby stars is limited by the power of our telescopes, posing a challenge to astronomers at small observatories that contribute to binary star surveys. Masks placed at the telescope aperture promise to augment the resolving power of telescopes of all sizes, but many of these masks must be manually and repetitively reoriented about the optical axis to achieve their full benefits. This paper introduces a design concept for a mask rotation mechanism that …

A System For Conducting Laser-Induced Fluorescence Measurements On Gas Mixtures Exposed To Alpha Radiation, Patrick Ables

Master's Theses

This paper documents modifications to an existing vacuum system to allow laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy measurements within simulated atmospheres under a variety of conditions. This added capability will expand the laboratory’s ability to experimentally validate a computational model that calculates the effects of radiation within the atmosphere. The computational model could reveal radiation-induced chemical products that can be used to develop an alternative detection method that can be implemented from a safe distance. The selection of molecules for experimental validation has been limited to those which can be detected utilizing cavity ringdown spectroscopy. The current model indicates nitric oxide and ozone …

Cavity Ringdown Spectroscopy In Nitrogen/Oxygen Mixtures In The Presence Of Alpha Radiation, Sidney John Gautrau

Master's Theses

This research was part of an effort to experimentally validate computational models under development for radiation-induced atmospheric effects. Cavity Ringdown Spectroscopy (CRDS) was used to measure the concentration of chemical products generated as a result of radiation interactions in a controlled atmosphere. Experiments were conducted in a vacuum chamber interfaced with a gas introduction system that controlled the initial atmospheric composition. A quadrupole mass spectrometer and tunable dye laser were integrated to confirm initial atmospheric composition, and provide wavelength flexibility for detecting a variety of chemical products generated by radiation interactions. CRDS measurements were made for ozone production resulting from …

Improving Hybrid Solar Cells: Overcoming Charge Extraction Issues In Bulk Mixtures Of Polythiophenes And Zinc Oxide Nanostructures, Grant T. Olson

Master's Theses

Organic photovoltaics (OPVs) have received a great deal of focus in recent years as a possible alternative to expensive silicon based solar technology. Current challenges for organic photovoltaics are centered around improving their lifetimes and increasing their power conversion efficiencies. One approach to improving the lifetime of such devices has been the inclusion of inorganic metal oxide layers, but interaction between the metal oxides and common conjugated polymers is not favorable. Here we present two methods by which the interactions between polythiophenes and nanostructured ZnO can be made to be more favorable. Using the first method, direct side on attachment …

Point-Spread Function Assessment Of Sg-Dbr Based Swept Source For Oct Imaging, David Wilkey Gilbert

Master's Theses

Swept Source Optical Coherence Tomography (SS-OCT) is a medical imaging technique that requires high repetition rate, widely-tunable coherent laser sources. Sampled grating distributed Bragg reflector (SG-DBR) lasers are proven in telecom applications and are expected to fulfill the requirements for SS-OCT at a significantly lower cost than alternative solutions.

Constructed entirely on a semiconductor substrate, SG-DBR lasers require four synchronized waveforms to modulate the output wavelength and intensity. Because of this unique tuning mechanism, there are a number of systematic and noise sources that can affect the quality of the OCT point-spread function (PSF). Based on these noise sources, software …