Vanderbilt Physics and Astronomy Department http://hdl.handle.net/1803/559 2013-05-22T15:08:12Z 2013-05-22T15:08:12Z Kidd, Daniel http://hdl.handle.net/1803/5204 2013-05-10T18:56:44Z 2013-04-22T05:00:00Z

Title: High-energy attosecond-width electron diffraction simulations Authors: Kidd, Daniel Abstract: Electron microscopy has been the recent subject of molecular imaging due to the strength of the electrons' interaction with the target molecule making for a detailed pattern at a small scale.[1] To achieve the best 4D image of the target, one needs sufficient spatial and temporal resolution, the prior being an issue of using electrons in the keV regime as to achieve an optimally small deBroglie wavelength, and the latter being improved by the temporal width of the electron wave packet itself.[2] In order to image the motion of the electronic structure of the target molecule, this width must be within the attosecond regime. In this paper, we use the computational method of time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) to model our targets of Beryllium and the Nitrogen molecule, N2 , and an incoming electron wave packet with an energy of 1500 eV.

2013-04-22T05:00:00Z Burroughs, Hunter http://hdl.handle.net/1803/5203 2013-05-09T21:42:23Z 2013-04-22T05:00:00Z

Title: An anomalous measurement of delta m31 squared from neutrino oscillations at the Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment Authors: Burroughs, Hunter Abstract: In 2012, the collaboration overseeing the Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment announced results which determined the magnitude of the mixing angle \theta_{13} with unprecedented precision. However, no attempt was made in the collaboration’s publications to predict the value of the most relevant mass-squared difference to the observed oscillation, \delta m^2_{31}. This paper presents the results of an analysis which suggests that the Daya Bay data prefers a value of \delta m^2_{31} which is far greater than its presently recognized value. Specifically, it is found that Daya Bay predicts \delta m^2_{31} = 3.53_(-1.07)^(+.74) × 10^(-3) eV^2, where the cited uncertainties correspond to the 99% confidence bounds. This measurement excludes the most precise current measurement of \delta m^2_{31}, the MINOS result, at a 99% confidence level and is in turn excluded by the MINOS data at a 10 \sigma level. The possibility that sterile neutrino effects are the cause of this anomalous result is considered and used to suggest further work.

2013-04-22T05:00:00Z Wibking, Benjamin http://hdl.handle.net/1803/5192 2013-05-02T19:53:23Z 2013-04-22T05:00:00Z

Title: Simulating the universe with GPU-accelerated supercomputers: n-body methods, tests, and examples Authors: Wibking, Benjamin Abstract: We demonstrate the acceleration obtained from using GPU/CPU hybrid clusters and supercomputers for N-body simulations of gravity based in part on the author's new code development.  Validation tests are shown for cosmological simulations and for galaxy simulations, along with their respective speedups compared to traditional simulations.  Potential new applications for science enabled by this advance are highlighted.

2013-04-22T05:00:00Z Atkinson, Mackenzie http://hdl.handle.net/1803/5191 2013-05-01T21:21:40Z 2013-04-22T05:00:00Z

Title: Simulations of Nano-Structures in Time Dependent External Fields Authors: Atkinson, Mackenzie Abstract: Time Dependent Density Functional Theory is used to probe the structure of matter. Coulomb explosion of small hydrocarbons driven by strong laser pulses and electron holography of molecules are studied in a theoretical framework. The spectra of the ejected protons obtained computationally is in good agreement with experimental data of Coulomb explosion. TDDFT allowed us to obtain time-dependent data, giving us a deeper understanding of the process. Our computational approach to electron holography provides 3-d reconstructions of simple molecules. Further investigation is needed in order to reconstruct larger molecules.

2013-04-22T05:00:00Z