Physics
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Optical and Spin Properties of Defect-Bound Excitons in Semiconductors
The physical properties of semiconductor defects are highly relevant for future quantum technologies and current semiconductor device performance. Optical spectroscopy is a powerful tool for investigating a wide variety ... -
Aspects of Chiral Symmetry Breaking in Lattice QCD
In this thesis we describe two studies concerting lattice quantum chromodynamics (LQCD): first, an analysis of the phase structure of Wilson and twisted-mass fermions with isospin breaking effects, second a computational ... -
The role of nuclear physics in supernovae and the evolution of neutron stars, Neutrino Opacities, Equation of State, Transport Coefficients, and Dark Matter Production
A massive star, of at least eight solar masses, end their life cycle in a sudden, catastrophic collapse under its own gravity. In a thousandth of a second, it can shrink from thousands of kilometers across to a ball of ... -
Device Physics of Two-Dimensional Crystalline Materials
The study of two-dimensional (2D) electrons in condensed matter physics has two milestones: quantum Hall effects in semiconductor heterostructures and superconductivity in cuprates. In both, the 2D electrons are embedded ... -
Searches for Beyond Standard Model Higgs Bosons in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 8 and 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector
The searches for a Beyond Standard Model (BSM) heavy CP-odd Higgs boson $A$ decaying to $Zh$ in the context of two-Higgs-doublet models (2HDM), and Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) neutral Higgs bosons $H/A$ ... -
Holographic Tools for Probing the Dynamics of Strongly Coupled Field Theories
Since it was conjectured almost 20 years ago, AdS/CFT duality, or holography, has enabled steady progress in understanding certain gauge theories in the strongly coupled limit. In this thesis we examine various aspects of ... -
Understanding near Fermi-level electronic structure through x-ray emission spectroscopy
Atomic and molecular chemical properties are largely determined by the electronic structure of near Fermi-level states. Determining this structure is therefore one of the central tasks in materials characterization and ... -
A search for hep solar neutrinos at the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory
Solar neutrinos from the fusion hep reaction, (helium-3 fusing with a proton to become helium-4, releasing a positron and neutrino), have previously remained undetected due to their flux being about one one-thousandth that ... -
Applications of Quantum Field Theory, From the Formal to the Phenomenological
Much of the beautiful and complex phenomenology of the Standard Model can be traced back to the presence of chiral symmetries, both global and local, and nonperturbative phenomena. Without chiral symmetries (and the anomalous ... -
Functionality, Robustness and Control of Nonlinear Network Dynamics: Modeling and Understanding the C. elegans Connectome
Networks of many nonlinearly-coupled dynamical components are ubiquitous in the physical sciences, but often difficult to characterize. However, their dynamics are often low-dimensional, being dominated by a few functional, ... -
Developments in the Theory of X-ray Absorption and Compton Scattering.
X-ray spectroscopy is a widely used technique in experimental and theoretical physics for studying electronic and chemical properties of materials. Theoretical approaches for studying x-ray absorption (XAS) and x-ray ... -
Variability of Point Sources of Gamma Rays Detected by the Fermi Large-Area Telescope
The Large Area Telescope (LAT) aboard the Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope has revolutionized gamma-ray astronomy, allowing the detection of thousands of point sources of gamma rays. Variability studies are of significant ... -
Developments for a measurement of the beta-nu correlation and determination of the recoil charge state distribution in 6He beta decay
The beta-nu of a pure Gamow-Teller beta decay such as the 6He decay is sensitive to tensor-type weak currents predicted by theories beyond the Standard Model. An experiment is developed at University of Washington aiming ... -
Investigating and Improving Student Understanding of Key Ideas in Quantum Mechanics throughout Instruction
This dissertation describes research on student understanding of quantum mechanics across multiple levels of instruction. The primary focus has been to identify patterns in student reasoning related to key concepts in ... -
Aluminum Content Tunability of Structural and Optical Properties in Wide-Gap Semiconducting (AlxGa1-x)2O3
(AlxGa1-x)2O3 alloys have attracted renewed interest due to their potential for use in deep-ultraviolet optical devices and high-powered transistors, but realization of these technologies depends on the ability to tune the ... -
Computational Studies on Novel Atomic Force Microscopy Techniques and Plasmonic-Enhanced Organic Photovoltaics
In physical and life sciences, employing computational approaches to understand the nature of studied materials and subjects and to analyze immense amount of data is increasingly becoming more popular. Using existing methods ... -
Search for Weakly-interacting, Long-lived particles that Decay to Displaced Hadronic Jets in Proton-Proton Collisions at $\sqrt{s}=8$ TeV with the ATLAS Detector.
A search is presented for the decay of the Standard Model Higgs boson or another scalar boson to a pair of weakly-interacting, long-lived particles in 20.3 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions at $\sqrt{s} = 8$ TeV recorded ... -
The Murchison Widefield Array 21cm Epoch of Reionization Experiment: Design, Construction, and First Season Results
The Cosmic Dark Ages and the Epoch of Reionization (EoR) remain largely unexplored chapters in the history and evolution of the Universe. These periods hold the potential to inform our picture of the cosmos similar to what ... -
Developments for the $^6$He $\beta-\bar{\nu}$ angular correlation experiment
This thesis describes developments toward the measurement of the angular correlation between the beta and the antineutrino in the beta decay of $^6$He. This decay is a pure Gamow-Teller decay which is described in the ... -
A Sub-Millimeter Parallel-Plate Test of Gravity
Newton's inverse-square law of gravitation is the oldest standing mathematical description of a fundamental interaction. Experimental tests of gravity's distance-dependence define a frontier between our understanding of ...
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