No current microfabrication technique exists for producing room-temperature, high-precision, point-to-point polymer nanofibers in three dimensions. Producing rounded structures in a third dimension is particularly difficult to accomplish with...
Hyaluronan (HA) is a major structural component of the ocular vitreous humor
(VH) and lipids are essential building blocks of cell membranes. However, little is known
about their possible interactions. The VH is known to undergo liquefaction...
Given a metric space (K, d), the hyperspace of K is defined by H(K) = {F c K: F is compact, F ≠ 0}. H(K) is itself a metric space under the Hausdorff metric dH. Hyperspaces have been extensively studied by topologists since the 1970's, but the...
The discovery of carbon nanotubes and subsequently graphene has led to an interest in carbon materials as sensing elements due to their unique properties. Graphene is a 2-dimensional material that has a large surface area that can be exposed to...
This dissertation describes research focused on the synthesis, polymerization and
applications of cationic aminooxy lipids. An efficient and convenient method was
developed to stabilize liposomes using 'click chemistry'. The 'click...
Few previous studies have compared microbial communities in subterranean and surface environments. Chemical analyses used to characterize the surface and cave microbial environments indicated limited exchange between surface and subsurface waters....
Aluminum fiber metal laminates (AFMLs) are a promising new type of fiber metal laminate that consists of aluminum foils interleaved with layers of a graphite fiber-polymer matrix composite (PMC) material. AFMLs combine the attractive features of...
Cardiac mapping has become an important area of research for understanding the mechanisms responsible for cardiac arrhythmias and the associated diseases. Current technologies for measuring electrical potentials on the surface of the heart are...
A process for fabricating PMOS transistors and test devices has been developed for educational purposes as part of a microfabrication undergraduate/graduate laboratory course at the University of Louisville. This is to help students from multiple...
Acetone--Analysis; Air quality monitoring stations
Zinc oxide (ZnO) based gas sensors with sliver ion exchanged ZSM-5 (Ag+ZSM-5) zeolite overlayer were created and tested for detection of acetone vapor in air. The ZnO and Ag+ZSM-5 films were deposisted on 400µm by 400µm platinum interdigitated...
In this dissertation, standardized methods for measuring electron emission (EE) from nanostructured materials are established. Design of an emitter array platform, synthesis and nanomanipulation of different types of are successfully conducted....
Characterization of the optical and electrical properties of organic solar cell materials is of prime importance to organic solar cell design. This thesis describes the use of capacitive photocurrent measurements to study the exciton generation and...
Fiber-reinforced polymer matrix composites (PMCs) using high-temperature thermoplastics as the matrix material represent a lightweight design solution for applications above 250°F. This is often required for aircraft structures subjected to...
Collateral sprouting (CS) occurs when uninjured axons respond to denervated tissue surrounding the axon by growing branches of the axon to reinnervate the denervated zone. This process is signaled by factors released by the denervated tissue. Nerve...
Ischemic heart disease is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity in Western societies. Thus, understanding the molecular mechanisms to reduce myocardial ischemia and limit infarction size are of great importance. Ample evidence has shown that...
Nanoparticles; Drug delivery devices; Gene therapy
The properties and broad applications of nano-magnetic colloids have generated much interest in recent years. Specially, Fe304 nanoparticles have attracted a great deal of attention since their magnetic properties can be used for hyperthermia...
In this thesis self-assembled growth of Ag2Ga nano-needles on batch fabricated
micro-grippers are reported. The room temperature growth of Ag2Ga nano-needles have
been recently developed as stylus for Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). Integration...
Understanding of the band structure of the new nano materials is essential to have a deeper insight into their optical and electrical properties. Along with the existing techniques used for characterization of nano-materials, it is also important...
Inflammation is now recognized as an important factor in several age-related diseases such as arthritis, atherosclerosis, multiple sclerosis and diabetes. In each case, sub-clinical chronic inflammation occurs over years and leads to progressive...
A novel catalyst with hydro-desulfurization and hydrogenation capabilities was tested with the aim of producing ultra-low sulfur and aromatics diesel oil. The catalytically active phase is nickel in a reduced valence state on a carrier made of zinc...