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An Engineering Analytics Based Framework For Computational Advertising Systems, Mengmeng Chen Jan 2018

An Engineering Analytics Based Framework For Computational Advertising Systems, Mengmeng Chen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Engineering analytics is a multifaceted landscape with a diversity of analytics tools which comes from emerging fields such as big data, machine learning, and traditional operations research. Industrial engineering is capable to optimize complex process and systems using engineering analytics elements and the traditional components such as total quality management. This dissertation has proven that industrial engineering using engineering analytics can optimize the emerging area of Computational Advertising. The key was to know the different fields very well and do the right selection. However, people first need to understand and be experts in the flow of the complex application of …

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Influence Of Chitosan-Alginate Scaffold Stiffness On Bone Marrow Stromal Cell Differentiation, Isabel Arias Ponce Jan 2018

Influence Of Chitosan-Alginate Scaffold Stiffness On Bone Marrow Stromal Cell Differentiation, Isabel Arias Ponce

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Tissue grafts are the gold standard for replacing large volume tissue defects. Yet, they present several risks, including infection, low functional outcomes, and reduced graft integrity. Tissue engineering (TE) combines cells and biomaterial scaffolds to foster tissue growth and remodeling. Bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) have been shown to respond to the stiffness of their microenvironment, resulting in differentiation into different lineages. 3D porous chitosan-alginate (CA) scaffolds have been previously demonstrated for bone TE with osteoblasts and BMSCs; however, only a single scaffold composition (4 wt%) was studied. Three CA scaffold compositions (2, 4, 6 wt% CA) were produced. Scanning …

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Cell Printing: An Effective Advancement For The Creation Of Um Size Patterns For Integration Into Microfluidic Biomems Devices, Megan Aubin Jan 2018

Cell Printing: An Effective Advancement For The Creation Of Um Size Patterns For Integration Into Microfluidic Biomems Devices, Megan Aubin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Body-on-a-Chip (BoaC) is a microfluidic BioMEMs project that aims to replicate major organs of the human body on a chip, providing an in vitro drug testing platform without the need to resort to animal model testing. Using a human model also provides significantly more accurate drug response data, and may even open the door to personalized drug treatments. Microelectrode arrays integrated with human neuronal or human cardiac cells that are positioned on the electrodes are essential components for BoaC systems. Fabricating these substrates relies heavily on chemically patterned surfaces to control the orientation and growth of the cells. Currently, …

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Terahertz Emission From The Intrinsic Josephson Junctions Of High-Symmetry Thermally-Managed Bi2sr2cacu2o8+D Annular Microstrip Antennas, Sheila Bonnough Jan 2018

Terahertz Emission From The Intrinsic Josephson Junctions Of High-Symmetry Thermally-Managed Bi2sr2cacu2o8+D Annular Microstrip Antennas, Sheila Bonnough

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The intrinsic Josephson junctions in the high transition temperature superconductor Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ (BSCCO) have shown great potential for oscillators emitting in the terahertz frequency. The radiation frequency satisfies the conditions for both the ac Josephson effect and for a mesa cavity resonance mode. The observed angular dependence of the emissions from some mesa imply that the ac Josephson effect plays the primary role in a dual source radiation mechanism. But the integrated emission power had generally been significantly below the 1 mW level suitable for many applications. This output power can be enhanced by a suitable design of an array of …

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The State Of Trauma-Informed Care In The Preschool, Ellen Kolomeyer Jan 2018

The State Of Trauma-Informed Care In The Preschool, Ellen Kolomeyer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study aimed to provide a foundational knowledge base from which to begin bridging the gap between research on trauma-informed, relationship-based therapeutic interventions in early childhood preschool classrooms and the practice of such classroom-based interventions. Specifically, this study identified several specific predictors (e.g., funding) and barriers (e.g., lack of knowledge and training in assessment instruments and referral options) to gaining trauma-informed knowledge and engaging in trauma-informed practices in preschool classrooms. Individuals in leadership roles at preschools were sampled anonymously with regard to their current trauma-informed knowledge and program practices. Participants included 98 preschool leaders from Florida, 36 preschool leaders from …

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Eye Movements And Spatial Ability: Influences On Thinking During Analogical Problem Solving, Bradford Schroeder Jan 2018

Eye Movements And Spatial Ability: Influences On Thinking During Analogical Problem Solving, Bradford Schroeder

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Classic studies have examined the factors that influence the way in which people can solve difficult "insight" problems, which require creative solutions. Recent research has shown that guiding one's eye movements in a pattern spatially congruent with the solution improves the likelihood of formulating a spatial solution. The authors in this line of research argued that guiding eye movements in a pattern spatially equivalent to the solution of the problem yields an embodied cognitive benefit that aids problem solving. Specifically, guiding eye movements leads to the generation of a mental representation containing perceptual information that helps a problem solver mentally …

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The Development And Validation Of The Multicultural Competency Assessment© (Mca©), Michelle Mitchell Jan 2018

The Development And Validation Of The Multicultural Competency Assessment© (Mca©), Michelle Mitchell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A sound and tested multicultural therapeutic approach is an essential component in providing ethical services to all client populations (e.g., Medley, Lipari, Bose, Cribb, Kroutil, & McHenry, 2015). Therefore, concepts of multiculturalism have been integrated in ethical codes, guidelines on competence, and standards for training in preparation programs within counseling, psychology, and social work fields (e.g., American Counseling Association Code of Ethics, 2014; American Psychological Association Guidelines on Multicultural Education, Training, Research, Practice, and Organizational Change for Psychologists, 2002; Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs Standards, 2016; National Association of Social Workers Standards and Indicators for Cultural …

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Help Me Be Healthy: Perceptions Of Social Support In An Online Weight Loss Program, Brittany Davies Jan 2018

Help Me Be Healthy: Perceptions Of Social Support In An Online Weight Loss Program, Brittany Davies

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As technology changes, so do the ways in which we receive information, provide information and interact with one another. The exchange of social support is increasingly mediated by technology in the realm of health, nutrition, and fitness (Dahl, et al 2015; Wright et al 2011). Commercial weight loss and healthy lifestyle initiatives such as the Beachbody programs incorporate social media and web applications to reach a broader consumer base with individualized programming options. The present study, guided by optimal matching theory and the helper theory principle, employed online participant-observation and in-depth, semi-structured interviews with Beachbody coaches and participants to investigate …

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A Phenomenological Study Of Black Fifth Grade Students' Perceptions Of Social Studies And A Discussion With Secondary Students, Irenea Walker Jan 2018

A Phenomenological Study Of Black Fifth Grade Students' Perceptions Of Social Studies And A Discussion With Secondary Students, Irenea Walker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The problem I address in this study is the lack of Black elementary students' knowledge and interest of the social studies content. Black students who lack a true identity of self, fail to develop into productive citizens. Although previous studies have examined Black students' experiences in secondary social studies classrooms, few have thoroughly examined Black students' experiences in the elementary classrooms. For this study, I analyze Black fifth grade students' perceptions of the social studies content. Identifying these perceptions is imperative so educators can adjust their pedagogical practices based on what they deem as important for educational growth, and the …

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The Client Assessment Of Multicultural Competent Behavior (Camcb): Development And Validation., Seungbin Oh Jan 2018

The Client Assessment Of Multicultural Competent Behavior (Camcb): Development And Validation., Seungbin Oh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The significance of multicultural counseling competence (MCC) has been increasingly recognized in the literature on mental health. Cultural diversification in the United States has prompted greater research in specialized mental health needs among diverse populations. However, despite the specialized mental health needs, diverse cultural groups have faced challenges in finding multiculturally competent mental health services. Accordingly, mental health professions have placed a greater emphasis on the development of therapists' MCC through the training and education, but also made ongoing efforts to integrate MCC into evidenced-based treatment. However, the mental health professions have faced difficulty in exploring evidence for the validity …

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Liquid Crystal Phase Modulation For Beam Steering And Near-Eye Displays, Yun-Han Lee Jan 2018

Liquid Crystal Phase Modulation For Beam Steering And Near-Eye Displays, Yun-Han Lee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Liquid crystal spatial phase modulator plays an important role in laser beam steering, wave-front shaping and correction, optical communication, optical computation and holography. One fundamental limitation lays in the response time of liquid crystal reorientation. To achieve fast response time, polymer-network liquid crystals are therefore proposed. By incorporating polymer network in a liquid crystal host, the response time can be reduced by a factor of 100. However, the polymer network introduces hysteresis, light scattering, and high voltage. The motivation for a fast-response liquid crystal phase modulator will be discussed in the first chapter. In the second chapter, we introduce our …

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Hosting Capacity Optimization In Modern Distribution Grids, Mansoor T. Alturki Jan 2018

Hosting Capacity Optimization In Modern Distribution Grids, Mansoor T. Alturki

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The availability of distributed renewable energy resources and the anticipated increase in new types of loads are changing the way electricity is being produced and supplied to consumers. This shift is moving away from a network delivering power solely from centralized power plants towards a decentralized network which supplements its power production by incorporating local distributed generators (DGs). However, the increased integration of DGs into existing distribution networks is impacting their behavior in terms of voltage profile, reliability, and power quality. To determine the maximum amount of DG that distribution grids can accommodate the concept of hosting capacity is introduced. …

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Automated Cfd Optimization To Maximize Wind Farms Performance And Land Use, Rafael Valotta Rodrigues Jan 2018

Automated Cfd Optimization To Maximize Wind Farms Performance And Land Use, Rafael Valotta Rodrigues

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this research, a computational system was designed to analyze and optimize the layout of wind farms under variable operational conditions. At first, a wind turbine computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model was developed covering the near wake. The near wake flow field was validated against near wake velocity data from the MEXICO experiment. The CFD simulation demonstrated that the tip speed ratio and the pitch angle greatly influence the near wake behavior, affecting the velocity deficit and the turbulence intensity profile in this region. The CFD model was extended to cover the far wake, aiming to become a computational tool …

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Sampling And Subspace Methods For Learning Sparse Group Structures In Computer Vision, Maryam Jaberi Jan 2018

Sampling And Subspace Methods For Learning Sparse Group Structures In Computer Vision, Maryam Jaberi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The unprecedented growth of data in volume and dimension has led to an increased number of computationally-demanding and data-driven decision-making methods in many disciplines, such as computer vision, genomics, finance, etc. Research on big data aims to understand and describe trends in massive volumes of high-dimensional data. High volume and dimension are the determining factors in both computational and time complexity of algorithms. The challenge grows when the data are formed of the union of group-structures of different dimensions embedded in a high-dimensional ambient space. To address the problem of high volume, we propose a sampling method referred to as …

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Enhancing Cognitive Algorithms For Optimal Performance Of Adaptive Networks, Hector Lugo-Cordero Jan 2018

Enhancing Cognitive Algorithms For Optimal Performance Of Adaptive Networks, Hector Lugo-Cordero

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research proposes to enhance some Evolutionary Algorithms in order to obtain optimal and adaptive network configurations. Due to the richness in technologies, low cost, and application usages, we consider Heterogeneous Wireless Mesh Networks. In particular, we evaluate the domains of Network Deployment, Smart Grids/Homes, and Intrusion Detection Systems. Having an adaptive network as one of the goals, we consider a robust noise tolerant methodology that can quickly react to changes in the environment. Furthermore, the diversity of the performance objectives considered (e.g., power, coverage, anonymity, etc.) makes the objective function non-continuous and therefore not have a derivative. For these …

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Energy Efficient And Secure Wireless Sensor Networks Design, Afraa Attiah Jan 2018

Energy Efficient And Secure Wireless Sensor Networks Design, Afraa Attiah

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are emerging technologies that have the ability to sense, process, communicate, and transmit information to a destination, and they are expected to have significant impact on the efficiency of many applications in various fields. The resource constraint such as limited battery power, is the greatest challenge in WSNs design as it affects the lifetime and performance of the network. An energy efficient, secure, and trustworthy system is vital when a WSN involves highly sensitive information. Thus, it is critical to design mechanisms that are energy efficient and secure while at the same time maintaining the desired …

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Fluid Dynamics Modeling And Sound Analysis Of A Bileaflet Mechanical Heart Valve, Fardin Khalili Jan 2018

Fluid Dynamics Modeling And Sound Analysis Of A Bileaflet Mechanical Heart Valve, Fardin Khalili

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the main causes of death in the world. Some CVD involve severe heart valve disease that require valve replacement. There are more than 300,000 heart valves implanted worldwide, and about 85,000 heart valve replacements in the US. Approximately half of these valves are mechanical. Artificial valves may dysfunction leading to adverse hemodynamic conditions. Understanding the normal and abnormal valve function is important as it help improve valve designs. Modeling of heart valve hemodynamics using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) provides a comprehensive analysis of flow, which can potentially help explain clinical observations and support therapeutic …

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Biomechanical Models Of Human Upper And Tracheal Airway Functionality, Don Nadun Kuruppumullage Jan 2018

Biomechanical Models Of Human Upper And Tracheal Airway Functionality, Don Nadun Kuruppumullage

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The respiratory tract, in other words, the airway, is the primary airflow path for several physiological activities such as coughing, breathing, and sneezing. Diseases can impact airway functionality through various means including cancer of the head and neck, Neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease, and sleep disorders and all of which are considered in this study. In this dissertation, numerical modeling techniques were used to simulate three distinct airway diseases: a weak cough leading to aspiration, upper airway patency in obstructive sleep apnea, and tongue cancer in swallow disorders. The work described in this dissertation, therefore, divided into three biomechanical …

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Investigating The Role Of Cognitive Load In Synthetic Learning Environments For Training, Joelene Goh Jan 2018

Investigating The Role Of Cognitive Load In Synthetic Learning Environments For Training, Joelene Goh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Ensuring effectiveness of training programs has been a dominant theme in the training industry, and is constantly evolving with the steady incorporation of emerging technology. This field study offers an investigation into the intersection between the applied and research world, and examines the practicality of recommended best practices for implementing synthetic learning environments (SLEs) in the military. Specifically, cognitive load has been identified as a significant factor in influencing the effectiveness of training programs. Research on this topic has focused on utilizing the affordances of SLEs to decrease cognitive load imposed by the material and system in order to allow …

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Characterization Of Fast Flames For Turbulence-Induced Deflagration To Detonation Transition, Jessica Chambers Jan 2018

Characterization Of Fast Flames For Turbulence-Induced Deflagration To Detonation Transition, Jessica Chambers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

One of the fundamental mechanisms for detonation initiation is turbulence driven deflagration to detonation transition (TDDT). The research experimentally explores the propagation dynamics demonstrated by fast deflagrated flames interacting with highly turbulent reactants. Fast flames produce extremely high turbulent flame speeds values, increased levels of compressibility and develop a runaway mechanism that leads to TDDT. The flame structural dynamics and reacting flow field are characterized using simultaneous high-speed particle image velocimetry, chemiluminescence, and Schlieren measurements. The investigation classifies the fast flame propagation modes at various regimes. The study further examines the conditions for a turbulent fast flame at the boundary …

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Does Constructive Criticism Boost Creativity? Examining The Moderating Role Of Leader-Member Exchange, Learning Goal Orientation, And Feedback Seeking Behavior, Devin Burnell Jan 2018

Does Constructive Criticism Boost Creativity? Examining The Moderating Role Of Leader-Member Exchange, Learning Goal Orientation, And Feedback Seeking Behavior, Devin Burnell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates whether constructive criticism enhances creative performance within the relationship context of leaders and followers. Previous research on leadership and creativity defines creative products as novel and useful, but overlooks antecedents to creative action—the immediate precondition of creative products. Creative action, or creative performance, includes (1) identifying a problem, (2) searching for information, (3) generating solutions, and (4) evaluating the best solution. Previous research informs that three psychological mechanisms are responsible for creative actions: (1) sense-making, (2) motivation, and (3) knowledge processes. Constructive criticism is posited to act simultaneously on each of these processes to encourage creative performance …

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Joint Optimization Of Illumination And Communication For A Multi-Element Vlc Architecture, Sifat Ibne Mushfique Jan 2018

Joint Optimization Of Illumination And Communication For A Multi-Element Vlc Architecture, Sifat Ibne Mushfique

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Because of the ever increasing demand wireless data in the modern era, the Radio Frequency (RF) spectrum is becoming more congested. The remaining RF spectrum is being shrunk at a very heavy rate, and spectral management is becoming more difficult. Mobile data is estimated to grow more than 10 times between 2013 and 2019, and due to this explosion in data usage, mobile operators are having serious concerns focusing on public Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) and other alternative technologies. Visible Light Communication (VLC) is a recent promising technology complementary to RF spectrum which operates at the visible light spectrum band (roughly …

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Compiler Design Of A Policy Specification Language For Conditional Gradual Release, Manasa Kashyap Harinath Jan 2018

Compiler Design Of A Policy Specification Language For Conditional Gradual Release, Manasa Kashyap Harinath

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Securing the confidentiality and integrity of information manipulated by computer software is an old yet increasingly important problem. Current software permission systems present on Android or iOS provide inadequate support for developing applications with secure information flow policies. To be useful, information flow control policies need to specify declassifications and the conditions under which declassification must occur. Having these declassifications scattered all over the program makes policies hard to find, which makes auditing difficult. To overcome these challenges, a policy specification language, 'Evidently' is discussed that allows one to specify information flow control policies separately from the program and which …

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Practical Dynamic Transactional Data Structures, Pierre Laborde Jan 2018

Practical Dynamic Transactional Data Structures, Pierre Laborde

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Multicore programming presents the challenge of synchronizing multiple threads. Traditionally, mutual exclusion locks are used to limit access to a shared resource to a single thread at a time. Whether this lock is applied to an entire data structure, or only a single element, the pitfalls of lock-based programming persist. Deadlock, livelock, starvation, and priority inversion are some of the hazards of lock-based programming that can be avoided by using non-blocking techniques. Non-blocking data structures allow scalable and thread-safe access to shared data by guaranteeing, at least, system-wide progress. In this work, we present the first wait-free hash map which …

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Learning Algorithms For Fat Quantification And Tumor Characterization, Sarfaraz Hussein Jan 2018

Learning Algorithms For Fat Quantification And Tumor Characterization, Sarfaraz Hussein

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Obesity is one of the most prevalent health conditions. About 30% of the world's and over 70% of the United States' adult populations are either overweight or obese, causing an increased risk for cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and certain types of cancer. Among all cancers, lung cancer is the leading cause of death, whereas pancreatic cancer has the poorest prognosis among all major cancers. Early diagnosis of these cancers can save lives. This dissertation contributes towards the development of computer-aided diagnosis tools in order to aid clinicians in establishing the quantitative relationship between obesity and cancers. With respect to obesity and …

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Bridging The Gap Between Application And Solid-State-Drives, Jian Zhou Jan 2018

Bridging The Gap Between Application And Solid-State-Drives, Jian Zhou

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Data storage is one of the important and often critical parts of the computing system in terms of performance, cost, reliability, and energy. Numerous new memory technologies, such as NAND flash, phase change memory (PCM), magnetic RAM (STT-RAM) and Memristor, have emerged recently. Many of them have already entered the production system. Traditional storage optimization and caching algorithms are far from optimal because storage I/Os do not show simple locality. To provide optimal storage we need accurate predictions of I/O behavior. However, the workloads are increasingly dynamic and diverse, making the long and short time I/O prediction challenge. Because of …

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Relating First-Person And Third-Person Vision, Shervin Ardeshir Behrostaghi Jan 2018

Relating First-Person And Third-Person Vision, Shervin Ardeshir Behrostaghi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Thanks to the availability and increasing popularity of wearable devices such as GoPro cameras, smart phones and glasses, we have access to a plethora of videos captured from the first person (egocentric) perspective. Capturing the world from the perspective of one's self, egocentric videos bear characteristics distinct from the more traditional third-person (exocentric) videos. In many computer vision tasks (e.g. identification, action recognition, face recognition, pose estimation, etc.), the human actors are the main focus. Hence, detecting, localizing, and recognizing the human actor is often incorporated as a vital component. In an egocentric video however, the person behind the camera …

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The Relationship Between Team Role Sub-Dimensions, Personality, And Team Effectiveness, Ryan Howell Jan 2018

The Relationship Between Team Role Sub-Dimensions, Personality, And Team Effectiveness, Ryan Howell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A manned mission to Mars would be the longest manned mission (both by distance and duration) to date by a considerable margin. Such a mission poses a unique set of challenges to astronaut teams, including extreme levels of isolation and confinement never before experienced by Earth-bound teams. A crucial step in ensuring the team will arrive back on Earth safely is selecting those individuals who are most apt for the job. To facilitate the selection process and development of countermeasures, this work (as part of a larger NASA research grant) involves examining the relationship between personality (Big 5; openness, conscientiousness, …

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Design And Engineering Criteria For Optical Parametric Chirped Pulse Amplifier Systems, Nathan Bodnar Jan 2018

Design And Engineering Criteria For Optical Parametric Chirped Pulse Amplifier Systems, Nathan Bodnar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The generation of a quasi-single-cycle laser light pulse is a goal in many laser applications experiments. Some involve in High Harmonic Generation (HHG) and Attosecond Sciences. The demand for ultrafast laser facilities has grown; the techniques and availability of materials have changed; thereby posing new design challenges in building Optical Parametric Chirped Pulse Amplification (OPCPA) laser facilities. The concepts and challenges are discussed in detail in the development of two laser systems within the Laser Plasma Laboratory, HERACLES and PhaSTHEUS. This dissertation also gives insight to the challenges that are encountered in other cutting edge OPCPA laser facilities. An overview …

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Artificial Neuron Using Mos2/Graphene Threshold Switching Memristor, Hirokjyoti Kalita Jan 2018

Artificial Neuron Using Mos2/Graphene Threshold Switching Memristor, Hirokjyoti Kalita

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

With the ever-increasing demand for low power electronics, neuromorphic computing has garnered huge interest in recent times. Implementing neuromorphic computing in hardware will be a severe boost for applications involving complex processes such as pattern recognition. Artificial neurons form a critical part in neuromorphic circuits, and have been realized with complex complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) circuitry in the past. Recently, insulator-to-metal-transition (IMT) materials have been used to realize artificial neurons. Although memristors have been implemented to realize synaptic behavior, not much work has been reported regarding the neuronal response achieved with these devices. In this work, we study the IMT in …

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