| This dissertation is an account of an attempt to develop a novel type of vacuum ultraviolet spectrometer; with the most obvious application being the study of quantum chaos in the electronic spectrum of helium, as a classic example of the three body problem. The three-body problem in the form of the earth-moon-sun system has a history dating back to the ancient Greeks. It remains today an object of intense study in atomic physics. Classically, the problem is chaotic, yet, it remains a quantum mechanical problem. The history of the classical three-body problem is briefly examined. Some ideas in chaotic dynamics are explored, with a numeric investigation of the double-pendulum being used as an example. The quantum mechanics of the helium atom is reviewed, and the tension between classical and quantum physics; and the signs that one expects from the so-called "quantum chaos" are explored. Finally, a novel Fourier transform spectrometer designed to operate in the soft X-ray regime and based on a division-of-wavefront strategy is discussed. This is eventually to be used for the ultra-high resolution study of the helium atom. The instrument is described, and directions for future progress with this system are given. |
