This book highlights the new technologies and applications presented at the 2021 International Conference on Precision Instruments and Optical Engineering held in Chengdu, China from 25 to 27 August 2021. The conference aimed to provide a platform for researchers and professionals to share research findings, discuss cutting-edge technologies, promote collaborations and fuel the industrial transition of new technologies. The invited and contributed papers covered recent developments in optoelectronic devices, nanophotonic research, optoelectronic materials, precision instruments, intelligent instruments, laser technology, optical spectroscopy and other optical engineering topics. The book is intended for researchers, engineers and advanced students interested in precision instruments and optical engineering and their applications in diverse fields.

Infrared thermography is a measurement technique that enables to obtain non intrusive measurements of surface temperatures. One of the interesting features of this technique is its ability to measure a full two dimensional map of the surface temperature and for this reason it has been widely used as a flow visualization technique. Since the temperature measurements can be extremely accurate it is possible, by using a heat flux sensor, also to measure convective heat transfer coefficient distributions on a surface making the technique de facto quantitative. This book, starting from the basic theory of infrared thermography and heat flux sensor guides, both the experienced researcher and the young student, in the correct application of this powerful technique to various practical problems. A significant number of examples and applications are also examined in detail.

This book presents a complete review of the unique instruments and the communication technologies utilized in downhole drilling environments. These instruments and communication technologies play a critical role in drilling hydrocarbon wells safely, accurately and efficiently into a target reservoir zone by acquiring information about the surrounding geological formations as well as providing directional measurements of the wellbore. Research into instruments and communication technologies for hydrocarbon drilling has not been explored by researchers to the same extent as other fields, such as biomedical, automotive and aerospace applications. Therefore, the book serves as an opportunity for researchers to truly understand how instruments and communication technologies can be used in a downhole environment and to provide fertile ground for research and development in this area. A look ahead, discussing other technologies such as micro-electromechanical-systems (MEMS) and fourth industrial revolution technologies such as automation, the industrial internet of things (IIoT), artificial intelligence, and robotics that can potentially be used in the oil/gas industry are also presented, as well as requirements still need to be met in order to deploy them in the field.

This book presents a general and comprehensive framework for the assurance of quality in measurements. Written by a foremost expert in the field, the text reflects an on-going international effort to extend traditional quality assured measurement, rooted in fundamental physics and the SI, to include non-physical areas such as person-centred care and the social sciences more generally. Chapter by chapter, the book follows the measurement quality assurance loop, based on Deming's work. The author enhances this quality assurance cycle with insights from recent research, including work on the politics and philosophy of metrology, the new SI, quantitative and qualitative scales and entropy, decision risks and uncertainty when addressing human challenges, Man as a Measurement Instrument, and Psychometry and Person-centred care. Quality Assured Measurement: Unification across Social and Physical Sciences provides students and researchers in physics, chemistry, engineering, medicine and the social sciences with practical guidance on designing, implementing and applying a quality-assured measurement while engaging readers in the most novel and expansive areas of contemporary measurement research.

This book presents a technical solution to ensuring the noise immunity of navigation systems in civil aviation aircrafts at the stages of their terminal procedures. It highlights instrumental precision approaches to landing and landing in automatic mode using satellite and inertial radio navigation systems and ground-based augmentation used as the primary means, in accordance with the ICAO requirements. The book is intended for engineering and technical specialists engaged in the development, manufacture and operation of on-board radio electronic systems of aircrafts and ground-based radio engineering support for flights, as well as graduate students and senior students of radio engineering specialties. It is also useful for professionals whose activities are related to air traffic control.

Due to steadily improving experimental accuracy, relativistic concepts - based on Einstein's theory of Special and General Relativity - are playing an increasingly important role in modern geodesy. This book offers an introduction to the emerging field of relativistic geodesy, and covers topics ranging from the description of clocks and test bodies, to time and frequency measurements, to current and future observations. Emphasis is placed on geodetically relevant definitions and fundamental methods in the context of Einstein's theory (e.g. the role of observers, use of clocks, definition of reference systems and the geoid, use of relativistic approximation schemes). Further, the applications discussed range from chronometric and gradiometric determinations of the gravitational field, to the latest (satellite) experiments. The impact of choices made at a fundamental theoretical level on the interpretation of measurements and the planning of future experiments is also highlighted. Providing an up-to-the-minute status report on the respective topics discussed, the book will not only benefit experts, but will also serve as a guide for students with a background in either geodesy or gravitational physics who are interested in entering and exploring this emerging field.

Today, Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) have a pervasive presence in almost every aspect of the management of water. There is no question that the collection of big data from sensing and the insights gained by smart analytics can bring massive benefits. This book focuses on new perspectives for the monitoring, assessment and control of water systems, based on tools and concepts originating from the ICT sector. It presents a portrait of up-to-date sensing techniques for water, and introduces concepts and implications with the analysis of the acquired data. Particular attention is given to the advancements in developing novel devices and data processing approaches. The chapters guide the reader through multiple disciplinary contexts, without aiming to be exhaustive, but with the effort to present relevant topics in such a highly multi-disciplinary framework. This book will be of interest to advanced students, researchers and stakeholders at various levels.

This book presents the basics and methods of nanoscale analytical techniques for tribology field. It gives guidance to the application of mechanical, microstructural, chemical characterization methods and topography analysis of materials. It provides an overview of the of state-of-the-art for researchers and practitioners in the field of tribology. It shows different examples to the application of mechanical, microstructural, chemical characterization methods and topography analysis of materials. Friction and Wear phenomena are governed by complexe processes at the interface of sliding surfaces. For a detailed understanding of these phenomena many surface sensitive techniques have become available in recent years. The applied methods are atom probe tomography, in situ TEM, SERS, NEXAFS, in situ XPS, nanoindentation and in situ Raman spectroscopy. A survey of new related numerical calculations completes this book. This concerns ab-initio coupling, numerical calculations for mechanical aspects and density functional theory (DFT) to study chemical reactivity.

Written by respected experts, this book highlights the latest findings on the electromagnetic ultrasonic guided wave (UGW) imaging method. It introduces main topics as the Time of Flight (TOF) extraction method for the guided wave signal, tomography and scattering imaging methods which can be used to improve the imaging accuracy of defects. Further, it offers essential insights into how electromagnetic UGW can be used in nondestructive testing (NDT) and defect imaging. As such, the book provides valuable information, useful methods and practical experiments that will benefit researchers, scientists and engineers in the field of NDT.

This thesis presents two significant results in the field of precision measurements in low-energy nuclear physics. Firstly, it presents a precise half-life determination of 11C, leading to the most precise ft-value for a beta decay transition between mirror nuclides, an important advance in the testing of the electroweak sector of the Standard Model. Secondly, it describes a high-precision mass measurement of 56Cu, a critical nucleus for determining the path of the astrophysical rapid-proton capture process, performed by the author using the LEBIT Penning trap at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory. This new measurement resolves discrepancies in previously-reported calculated mass excesses. In addition, the thesis also presents the construction and testing of a radio-frequency quadrupole cooler and buncher that will be part of the future N = 126 factory at Argonne National Laboratory aimed at producing nuclei of interest for the astrophysical rapid-neutron capture process for the first time.

This book provides insights into surface quality control techniques and applications based on high-definition metrology (HDM). Intended as a reference resource for engineers who routinely use a variety of quality control methods and are interested in understanding the data processing, from HDM data to final control actions, it can also be used as a textbook for advanced courses in engineering quality control applications for students who are already familiar with quality control methods and practices. It enables readers to not only assimilate the quality control methods involved, but also to quickly implement the techniques in practical engineering problems. Further, it includes numerous case studies to highlight the implementation of the methods using measured HDM data of surface features. Since MATLAB is extensively employed in these case studies, familiarity with this software is helpful, as is a general understanding of surface quality control methods.

This book is a compilation of selected papers from the fifth International Symposium on Software Reliability, Industrial Safety, Cyber Security and Physical Protection of Nuclear Power Plant, held in November 2020 in Beijing, China. The purpose of this symposium is to discuss Inspection, test, certification and research for the software and hardware of Instrument and Control (I&C) systems in nuclear power plants (NPP), such as sensors, actuators and control system. It aims to provide a platform of technical exchange and experience sharing for those broad masses of experts and scholars and nuclear power practitioners, and for the combination of production, teaching and research in universities and enterprises to promote the safe development of nuclear power plant. Readers will find a wealth of valuable insights into achieving safer and more efficient instrumentation and control systems.

This book presents a compilation of selected papers from the Fourth International Symposium on Software Reliability, Industrial Safety, Cyber Security and Physical Protection of Nuclear Power Plant, held in August 2019 in Guiyang, China. The purpose of the symposium was to discuss inspection, testing, certification and research concerning the software and hardware of instrument and control (I&C) systems used at nuclear power plants (NPP), such as sensors, actuators and control systems. The event provides a venue for exchange among experts, scholars and nuclear power practitioners, as well as a platform for the combination of teaching and research at universities and enterprises to promote the safe development of nuclear power plants. Readers will find a wealth of valuable insights into achieving safer and more efficient instrumentation and control systems.

This book explains how to improve the validity, reliability, and repeatability of slip resistance assessments amongst a range of shoes, floors, and environments from an engineering metrology viewpoint-covering theoretical and experimental aspects of slip resistance mechanics and mechanisms. Pedestrian falls resulting from slips or falls are one of the foremost causes of fatal and non-fatal injuries that limit people's functionality. There have been prolonged efforts globally to identify and understand their main causes and reduce their frequency and severity. This book deals with large volumes of information on tribological characteristics such as friction and wear behaviours of the shoes and floors and their interactive impacts on slip resistance performances. Readers are introduced to theoretical concepts and models and collected evidence on slip resistance properties amongst a range of shoe and floor types and materials under various ambulatory settings. These approaches can be used to develop secure design strategies against fall incidents and provide a great step forward to build safer shoes, floors, and walking/working environments for industries and communities around the world. The book includes many case studies.

This book provides a comprehensive review of all aspects relating to visual quality assessment for stereoscopic images, including statistical mathematics, stereo vision and deep learning. It covers the fundamentals of stereoscopic image quality assessment (SIQA), the relevant engineering problems and research significance, and also offers an overview of the significant advances in visual quality assessment for stereoscopic images, discussing and analyzing the current state-of-the-art in SIQA algorithms, the latest challenges and research directions as well as novel models and paradigms. In addition, a large number of vivid figures and formulas help readers gain a deeper understanding of the foundation and new applications of objective stereoscopic image quality assessment technologies. Reviewing the latest advances, challenges and trends in stereoscopic image quality assessment, this book is a valuable resource for researchers, engineers and graduate students working in related fields, including imaging, displaying and image processing, especially those interested in SIQA research.

To cope with the new running conditions in the ALICE experiment at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, a new integrated circuit named SAMPA has been created that can process 32 analogue channels, convert them to digital, perform filtering and compression, and transmit the data on high speed links to the data acquisition system. The main purpose of this work is to specify, design, test and verify the digital signal processing part of the SAMPA device to accommodate the requirements of the detectors involved. Innovative solutions have been employed to reduce the bandwidth required by the detectors, as well as adaptations to ease data handling later in the processing chain. The new SAMPA device was built to replace two existing circuits, in addition to reducing the current consumption, and doubling the amount of processing channels. About 50000 of the devices will be installed in the Time Projection Chamber and Muon Chamber detectors in the ALICE experiment.

This book presents the first simultaneous detection of neutrons and positrons after a terrestrial gamma-ray flash (TGF), a highest-energy transient phenomenon on the earth, triggered by a lightning discharge, based on innovative ground-based observations made in the Hokuriku area of Japan. TGFs, known to be produced by lightning discharges since the 1990s, has been theoretically predicted to react with atmospheric nuclei via photonuclear reactions because they comprise high-energy photons of more than 10 MeV, but such photonuclear reactions by lightning discharges, which produce neutrons and unstable isotopes emitting positrons, were not observationally confirmed. The reactions and propagations of their products in the atmosphere are modeled with Monte Carlo simulations to quantitatively evaluate observations of TGFs, neutrons, and positrons at ground level. The successful comparison between observation and simulation is presented, and demonstrates that lightning discharges to trigger photonuclear reactions and to even produce isotopes in the atmosphere.

This new edition describes pressure and temperature sensitive paints (PSP and TSP) in global surface pressure and temperature measurements in aerodynamics and fluid mechanics. The book includes the latest progress in paint formulations, instrumentation, and steady and unsteady aerodynamic measurements in various facilities including low-speed, transonic, supersonic and hypersonic wind tunnels. The updated technical aspects of PSP and TSP in the book will be useful for students and researchers in experimental aerodynamics and fluid mechanics.

This book delivers a comprehensive overview of units of measurement. Beginning with a historical look at metrology in Ancient India, the book explains fundamental concepts in metrology such as basic, derived and dimensionless quantities, and introduces the concept of quantity calculus. It discusses and critically examines various three and four-dimensional systems of units used both presently and in the past, while explaining why only four base units are needed for a system of measurement. It discusses the Metre Convention as well as the creation of the International Bureau of Weights and Measures, and gives a detailed look at the evolution of the current SI base units of time, length, mass, electric current, temperature, intensity of illumination and substance. This updated second edition is extended with timely new chapters discussing past efforts to redefine the SI base units as well as the most recent 2019 redefinitions based entirely on the speed of light and other fundamental physical constants. Additionally, it provides biographical presentations of many of the historical figures behind commonly used units of measurements, such as Newton, Joule and Ohm, With its accessible and comprehensive treatment of the field, together with its unique presentation of the underlying history, this book is well suited to any student and researcher interested in the practical and historical aspects of the field of metrology.

This thesis summarizes the original analysis work performed by the author on data from XENON1T, a search for dark matter with a ton-size noble liquid detector operated at Gran Sasso Underground Laboratory in Italy. The nature of dark matter is one of the most open and pressing questions of modern physics, and the unique data acquired with this detector allows the exploration and investigation of several potential scenarios. The analysis of Dr. Shockley searches for a class of elusive elementary particles that interact with the electrons of ordinary atoms, instead of the nucleus. Results of the analysis present, with high confidence, an excess with respect to the expected background. Beyond more mundane explanations, this additional rate of electron-mediated interactions might be a first hint of physics beyond the standard model. This accessible thesis provides details on the detector, the data, and the theory, delivering to the reader an in-depth and coherent picture of the search for physics beyond the standard model.

This book expands on the subject matter of 'Computational Electromagnetics and Model-Based Inversion: A Modern Paradigm for Eddy-Current Nondestructive Evaluation.' It includes (a) voxel-based inversion methods, which are generalizations of model-based algorithms; (b) a complete electromagnetic model of advanced composites (and other novel exotic materials), stressing the highly anisotropic nature of these materials, as well as giving a number of applications to nondestructive evaluation; and (c) an up-to-date discussion of stochastic integral equations and propagation-of-uncertainty models in nondestructive evaluation. As such, the book combines research started twenty-five years ago in advanced composites and voxel-based algorithms, but published in scattered journal articles, as well as recent research in stochastic integral equations. All of these areas are of considerable interest to the aerospace, nuclear power, civil infrastructure, materials characterization and biomedical industries. The book covers the topic of computational electromagnetics in eddy-current nondestructive evaluation (NDE) by emphasizing three distinct topics: (a) fundamental mathematical principles of volume-integral equations as a subset of computational electromagnetics, (b) mathematical algorithms applied to signal-processing and inverse scattering problems, and (c) applications of these two topics to problems in which real and model data are used. It is therefore more than an academic exercise and is valuable to users of eddy-current NDE technology in industries as varied as nuclear power, aerospace, materials characterization and biomedical imaging.

This thesis develops next-generation multi-degree-of-freedom gyroscopes and inertial measurement units (IMU) using micro-electromechanical-systems (MEMS) technology. It covers both a comprehensive study of the physics of resonator gyroscopes and novel micro/nano-fabrication solutions to key performance limits in MEMS resonator gyroscopes. Firstly, theoretical and experimental studies of physical phenomena including mode localization, nonlinear behavior, and energy dissipation provide new insights into challenges like quadrature errors and flicker noise in resonator gyroscope systems. Secondly, advanced designs and micro/nano-fabrication methods developed in this work demonstrate valuable applications to a wide range of MEMS/NEMS devices. In particular, the HARPSS+ process platform established in this thesis features a novel slanted nano-gap transducer, which enabled the first wafer-level-packaged single-chip IMU prototype with co-fabricated high-frequency resonant triaxial gyroscopes and high-bandwidth triaxial micro-gravity accelerometers. This prototype demonstrates performance amongst the highest to date, with unmatched robustness and potential for flexible substrate integration and ultra-low-power operation. This thesis shows a path toward future low-power IMU-based applications including wearable inertial sensors, health informatics, and personal inertial navigation.

This book provides a comprehensive introduction to the methods and variety of Kelvin probe force microscopy, including technical details. It also offers an overview of the recent developments and numerous applications, ranging from semiconductor materials, nanostructures and devices to sub-molecular and atomic scale electrostatics. In the last 25 years, Kelvin probe force microscopy has developed from a specialized technique applied by a few scanning probe microscopy experts into a tool used by numerous research and development groups around the globe. This sequel to the editors' previous volume "Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy: Measuring and Compensating Electrostatic Forces," presents new and complementary topics. It is intended for a broad readership, from undergraduate students to lab technicians and scanning probe microscopy experts who are new to the field.