Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy, X-Ray Diffraction And Optical Luminescence Studies Of Phase Transition Of Titania Nanotubes, Lu Yao

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The one-dimensional (1D) TiO₂ nanotubes (NTs) and their derivatives have been extensively studied due to their wide applications, such as photocatalysts, solar cell, paints and so on. Since TiO₂ has a wide band gap (~3.0 eV), its photo-absorption as the photocatalyst only occurs in the UV region that wastes mostly solar energy. Therefore, the solution to higher photocatalytic efficiency has been sought for some time. This thesis presents a study of the size-dependent phase transitions of TiO₂ NTs using synchrotron-based X-ray techniques. The chemical environment including local symmetry and the luminescence origin of the TiO₂ NTs …

Synchrotron Radiation Analysis Of Daguerreotypes: Surface Characterization, Electrocleaning, And Preservation, Madalena S. Kozachuk

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The first commercially viable photographic image, the daguerreotype, captured images from 1839 to 1860. While daguerreotypes provide a significant historical record of 19^th century individuals and events, deterioration now disfigures many of these images. This work describes the application of synchrotron radiation (SR) to the study of daguerreotypes.

Three goals were addressed in this thesis: 1) to utilize SR to further elucidate the physics and chemistry of the daguerreotype and how the surface varies with time, 2) to study the effects of the electrocleaning system on the daguerreotype surface, and 3) to propose suggestions to improve their preservation and …