Filetype
This thesis focuses on electrical transport in semiconductor InAs nanowires grown by chemical beam epitaxy. Initially, transport length scales of homogeneous InAs n-type nanowires are characterized by low-temperature magnetoconductance measurements. The measurements show phase-coherent conductivity corrections. By fitting the data, we find the nanowire mean-free path to be 50 nm and the phase-cohe
As quality and performance demands on today’s products increases, more and more advanced materials are being used during modern production. The problem is however that this in turn place new demands on the machining processes utilized. Even though a significant amount of research has been published on the machining of these materials knowledge is still limited in several crucial areas. A problem w
We are interested in the effect of harvesting on population fluctuations and for that purpose we develop and analyze an age-structured model where recruitment is a stochastic process and the adult segment of the population is harvested. When a constant annual harvest is taken the coefficient of variation of the adult population increases for most parameter values due to the age truncation effect,
Starches and celluloses can be chemically modified in order to affect their physiochemical properties. Modification of these carbohydrate polymers entails derivatising their free hydroxyl groups with functional groups. Which properties are obtained depends on the nature of the functional groups as well as on how they are distributed throughout the polymeric structure of the carbohydrate. Unfortuna
In this thesis I present studies concerning genomic diversity and genetic heterogeneity as well as the evolution and maintenance of genetic variation at a specific immune defence gene in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar, L.). I here present data on nucleotide diversity showing that human activities as well as different post-glacial colonisation events have had considerable effects on the genomic diver
This thesis presents the utilization of two different decomposition techniques, proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) and dynamic mode decomposition (DMD), for enhanced understanding of flow structures and their stability. The advantages of these techniques are shown for a range of flow situations, most of which are turbulent. It is shown that by these methods additional insight into complex flow
The aim of this work was to study atmospheric aerosols, focusing on the chemical composition, the morphology and the origin of the aerosol in the upper troposphere and lowermost stratosphere. An aerosol sampler was developed for this purpose. A new method for quantitative analysis of the major components of the aerosol, i.e. C, N and O was developed, and methodologies for single-particle analysis
Selenium is an essential nutrient and in animals and humans it can either be specifically incorporated into proteins as selenocysteine or randomly as selenomethionine. It can also occur as low-molecular-weight compounds and the form of selenium in foods may also influence food quality. The aims of the present studies were: to study selenium and other trace element compounds in milk and whey; to el
Power Doppler ultrasound (PDU) is a sensitive technique to detect slow blood movement. The aim of the present study was to develop a standardized method for quantification of the PDU signals recorded from a specific region of interest (ROI) within fetal organs. The quantification method - fractional moving blood volume (FMBV) - compensating for factors potentially affecting the final results, e.g.
The subject of this thesis is plasma protein C4b-binding protein (C4BP). C4BP is an important regulator of the classical pathway of the complement system, a cascade-like system comprised of over 35 proteins, which partakes in the defence against micro-organisms and is involved of clearance of immune-complexes and apoptotic cells. C4BP contains two different types of subunits, seven identical alfa-
Poststernotomy mediastinitis is a devastating complication associated with median sternotomy, which occurs mainly after cardiac surgery. The optimal treatment is still controversial. The aim was to develop, describe and evaluate a surgical procedure consisting of vacuum-assisted closure (VAC) in combination with delayed primary closure in patients with mediastinitis. A porcine sternotomy wound mo
Coagulase-negative staphyloccoci (CoNS) are the most frequently isolated micro-organisms from infected cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) shunts and temporary ventricular drainage catheters, used in modern neurosurgery. CoNS originate from the skinflora of the patient or the surgeon and gain access to the surface of the implant at the insertion, but the infection can erupt up to a year later or more. Immed
Postoperative pain relief with opioids after major non-cardiac surgery may give rise to adverse effects. The fear of dangerous side effects may therefore limit the optimal use of different treatment modalities in surgical wards. Opioids can be administered alone as an intravenous infusion, or in combination with local anaesthetics as an epidural infusion. Both regimes can be tailored with a patien
Around 1750 a German chemist discovered it to be possible to extract sugar crystals from beet juice. Since then, breeding and improved agricultural practices have increased the concentration of sucrose per root from around 4% to around 18%. Sugar content is still one of the most important characters in sugar beet breeding, but breeders of today are also faced with many more characters, many of a c
Carex humilis forms rings of densely aggregated ramets in dry grassland vegetation in Central Europe. In the thesis I conclude that ramet demography is important both for analyzing fitness in clonal plants and for understanding how C. humilis rings are formed. I studied the ramet demography of C. humilis from 1993-1998 at the Hexenberg mountain, 300 m.a.s., 60 km east of Vienna, Austria. In total,
Two prospective, short-term and long-term consecutive randomized studies on non-surgical treated patients with an ACL injury were performed. None of the patients were athletes on a professional level. Outcome measures : isometric muscle strength and isokinetic musclefunction, one-leg hop test, single limb balance, Lysholm knee score and Tegner activity level. In study number one 26 patients with n
Salt stress is one of the historically as well as potentially largest agriculture problem humans have faced. Researchers have investigated and tried to solve this problem for a long time. Over 20 reviews have been written on this topic the last five years. In this thesis the extent of salt stress in today's agriculture, the toxic and damaging effects on plants and bacteria exposed to salt stress,
The purpose for this work has been to develop new robust fuel electrodes for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC). The aim was to find suitable ceramic materials or composites with promising properties for the use as SOFC anodes. Preferably, the electrode should not contain any metal (or at least a metal should not be a major component) in order to improve the redox properties. The present work focuses o
The present study explored the gene and protein expression of the monoamine transporters in human endometrium throughout the menstrual cycle, in early decidua and in placentas from normal as well as preeclamptic pregnancies using in-situ hybridization, real time-PCR, immunohistochemistry and primary tissue cultures. Four distinguishable patterns were observed in the endometrium over the menstrual
The aim of this work was to study prospectively the effects of different feeding regimens during the first three days of life. A group of 129 infants were randomly assigned at birth to one of three feeding regimens: human milk (HM), cow's milk formula (CMF), or a casein hydrolysate formula (CHF). The formula-fed infants received no human milk until the fourth day of life, after which all infants w
