Approved Accepted

I would like to express my gratitude to Dr. Klaus W. Zieber for the opportunity to work on this project. I appreciate his leadership and support throughout the duration of this endeavor. I also thank Dr. M. K. Kristiansen and Dr. Carlton Whitehead for serving on my committee. I must also thank Dr. Tommy Burkes and Dr. Glenn McDuff for helping me to realize the importance of an advanced degree in the first place, without them I would not have continued into graduate school. The financial support from the Air Force Office of Scientific Research is greatly appreciated. I am most appreciative of the Pulsed Power Lab staff who are always willing to give assistance and advice. I especially thank Mr. Lonnie Stevenson for his invaluable assistance in the machine shop. Mike Grothaus and David Buraczyk were inexpressibly helpful. They were always there to answer any questions and help with any problems when I started working on this project. I would like to thank my fellow graduate students for their support and I wish them all continued success. Without them it would not have been nearly as much fun. I especially miss "the old group"