In a competitive market, airlines continually seek solutions that can reduce their operational costs. Flight path optimisation is a commonly pursued approach to this but requires a large amount of data about the flight environment including the weather information, the aircraft performance and the air traffic control (ATC) requirements. Existing programmes require the user to provide this aircraft performance data in advance and are incapable of generating the information on their own. In this study, using a multidisciplinary approach and numerical optimisations, a novel standalone flight path optimiser (SAFPO) solution is proposed and developed to choose the best flight path for a flight between two points in accordance with the cost objectives. SAFPO uses its own performance calculator, predefined ATC routes, and known weather information to find the optimum flight path which minimises fuel consumption and/or flight time. The aerodynamic characteristics of the aircraft are determined using a validated semi-empirical programme called MAPLA, previously developed for light aircraft analysis. Furthermore, the optimisation process consists of a multidisciplinary-feasible (MDF) framework that employs a genetic algorithm (GA) optimiser. The resulting performance characteristics of the aircraft and the optimisation process are compared with the actual information provided within the flight manual of a Beechcraft Baron G58 aircraft. The optimisation results show that SAFPO can be used to make advances in the daily operations of small and local airlines suffering from a lack of aircraft performance data and help them to choose the scenario that best accomplishes their cost objectives.

The THz spectral region includes a number of important transitions which allow us to trace the evolution of the interstellar medium. Because of the opacity of the atmosphere in this spectral range, the best sites for ground-based THz observations are on the Antarctic Plateau; of these sites, Dome A is expected to be the best. THz survey science can be carried out with small telescopes, easing logistical constraints. By deploying a submillimetre-wave tipper/ telescope to Dome A, we have trialled several technologies for such an instrument, and we are able to test whether the site quality is sufficient for THz surveys.

Omicron Andromedae is a multiple system of at least four stars: a B ↔Be star (component A), a spectroscopic binary (components B1–B2) and a close companion (component a). According to several studies (see Hill et al. 1988, 1989):

1. - the distance between A and the B1–B2 system decreased from 0.39″ in 1975 to 0.25″ in 1987 (McAlister and Hartkopf 1988)

2. - the few previous speckle measurements of component a have shown the possibility of a 3.7 years orbit around A, according to the 1975 to 1984 observations (mean distance 0.05″). The calculations with this 3.7 yr orbit lead to the prediction of a maximum distance of 0.77″ at 1992.738, i.e. at the end of september 1992, with a North-South orientation.

The influence of a number of substrate conditions and interfacial contaminants on the adhesion strength of thin Au films (10 to 100 nm thick) to GaAs substrates was studied. The GaAs surfaces were prepared by cleaving on the <110> plane under controlled atmospheres and conditions prior to depositing the Au film. Adhesion strengths were measured using the pinpull test. The study included standard characterization techniques to examine the substrate surface and the Au-GaAs interfaces. A direct correlation was found between cases of poor adhesion and the presence of hydroxyl groups on the GaAs surface. The influence of post evaporative treatments to improve the adhesion of specific cases was also studied.

A theoretical formalism to describe interface adhesion phenomena between materials has been developed. In this model electron densities, potentials, and adhesion energies of thin metal films at metal–semiconductor and metal–insulator interfaces are derived through a partially self–consistent calculation. The theory is based on a density–functional formalism applied to a simple model of the system in which the metal is replaced by a uniform positive background and the semiconductor by a continuum with a static dielectric constant. Numerical results of the metal electron density distribution and effective potential of Au–vacuum and Au–GaAs system, and the adhesion energy at Au–GaAs interface are presented. The interface energies are then used to estimate the adhesion strength and compare with experiment.

Comparative thin film adhesion studies were performed on GaAs substrates using Au or Au-Ni-Ge, metallization materials. The influence of parameters such as crystal orientation, substrate surface preparation, deposition vacuum conditions, thickness and composition of films, and post-evaporative treatment such as ion-beam mixing and thermal annealing, on film adhesion was considered. The quality of the adhesion bond was measured using Scotch tape tests and a Sebastian adhesion tester. Film interfaces were characterized using AES, XPS, and RBS techniques. The results indicate that the most important factors dominating the quality of adhesion were surface preparation and the deposition vacuum conditions. Films deposited under optimum conditions were found to adhere so well that the GaAs crystal would fracture before the film would pull free of the substrate. The influence of ion beam mixing on the quality of adhesion was tested and only in the cases of depositions under the less optimum conditions, where the adhesion was poor, could an improvement be made in the adhesive properties.