Contents

• List of Figures
• List of Tables
• Acknowledgments
• Declaration
• Abstract
• Introduction
  • Synchrotron Radiation
  • Galactic Supernova Remnants
    • Nonthermal Emission from SNRs
    • Continuum Radio Spectra
    • Thermal emission
    • Radio morphology
    • Galactic distribution
  • Effects of the ISM on the observed properties of SNRs
  • Why low frequency?
  • Aperture synthesis at low frequencies
    • Phase fluctuations
    • Non-coplanar baselines
    • On-line and off-line data analysis
    • Instrumental polarization leakage
  • Organization of the thesis
  
  
• The Giant Meterwave Radio Telescope
  • Principles of aperture synthesis
    • Interferometry in practice
  • The Array
  • Signal flow
  • Telescope parameters
  • The GMRT correlator
    • Overview
    • Delay compensation
    • Imaging modes
  • Baseline and fixed delay calibration
    • Baseline calibration
    • Fixed delay calibration
  
  
• Data analysis software
  • Introduction
  • The software design
    • On-line usage of the software
  • Data manipulation libraries
    • The LTAFMT Object
    • The LTAVIEW object
    • The LTARec object
  • The user interface for off-line programs
  • Data analysis and display programs
    • The program xtract and its variants
    • The rantsol and badbase programs
    • The closure program
    • Conversion to FITS format
    • Miscellaneous programs
  
  
• The GMRT Data
  • GMRT Observations
  • Low frequency specific problems
    • Mapping with non co-planar arrays
    • Bandwidth Smearing
  • Observational procedure
    • On-line monitoring
  • Data Analysis
    • Data Editing
    • Data Editing and Calibration in AIPS
  • Inversion and deconvolution of GMRT data
  • The Images
  
  
• Observations of Supernova Remnants
  • Introduction
  • Candidate SNRs
    • G001.40.1
    • G003.80.3
    • G004.20.0
    • G004.86.2
    • G356.3-1.5
    • G356.24.5
    • G358.03.8
  • Continuum flux densities of known SNRs
    • G003.70.2
    • G355.92.5
    • Kepler's SNR (G004.56.8)
  • Discussion
  
  
• Other objects in the fields
  • Introduction
  • Point sources in the fields
  • Extended sources
    • G003.6-0.11
    • Linear structure in the field of G356.31.5
  • Extended emission around Ultra Compact HII regions
    • G004.4170.126
    • G003.3490.076
  • Discussion
  
  
• Measurement of polarization leakage
  • Introduction
  • Motivation
  • Algorithm and simulation
    • The leaky antsol
    • Results of the simulations
  • Real data
    • 150 MHz data
    • L-band data with circular feed
  • Closure phase and the Poincaré sphere
  • Non-uniqueness of solutions
  • Conclusions
  
  
• Conclusions
  • Using the Giant Meterwave Radio Telescope
    • Testing and debugging
    • Software development
  • Candidate Galactic SNRs
  • Other sources in the fields
  • Future directions
  • Some thoughts on the role of software for the GMRT
  
  
• The user interface for off-line applications
  • The User interface commands
    • De-referencing mechanism
    • File name convention
  • Customization
    • The help keyword
  
  
• xtract: Usage and programming with the library
  • The macro language
  • Output filters
  • Internal design
    • Macro compilation
    • Macro execution
  • Programming with the xtract library
    • Interpretation and compilation of the format string
    • Execution of the compiled macro
    • The Parameters structure
  • Adding new elements to the syntax
  
  
• Antenna/baseline naming convention
  • Antenna naming convention
  • Baseline naming convention
    • Examples
  
  
• Computation of antenna based complex gains
  • Interpretation of the equation
  • Estimation of the system temperature ()
  • Derivation of using real and imaginary parts
  
  
• Bibliography
• About this document ...