Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Production Of Medical Radioisotopes Using Titanium Accelerator Targets, Christopher Shaun Loveless

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Theranostic radiopharmaceuticals enable diagnostic imaging and radionuclide therapy in patients using a single molecular agent labeled with a diagnostic-therapeutic pair (e.g., 68Ga/177Lu) or a theranostic radionuclide (e.g., 131I). This theranostic approach can help inform patient-specific treatment plans and improve clinical outcomes. Radionuclide pairs used in theranostic agents fall into two categories: pseudo matched-pairs (e.g., 68Ga/177Lu) and matched-pairs (e.g., 124I/131I). Pseudo matched-pair radionuclides have similar chemistries and pharmacokinetics when bound to the same bioconjugate molecule. In contrast, identical chemistries and pharmacokinetics can be obtained by using the matched-pair radionuclides.

The isotopes of Sc include two diagnostic radioisotopes, 43Sc & 44Sc, and …

Peer-Led Team Learning In Calculus-Based Introductory Physics: Implementation And Evaluation, Siera Maia Stoen

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Robust evidence shows that Peer-led Team Learning (PLTL) improves the academic success of college students in introductory Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) courses. However, further research is needed to gain a fuller understanding of the benefits of PLTL and the aim of this dissertation is to explore two key and understudied questions surrounding the effects of PLTL. First, does deviating from the optimal implementation of PLTL change its effectiveness? Second, what specific outcomes, in addition to academic success (e.g., exam scores), does PLTL improve? This dissertation will provide a fuller picture of the impact of PLTL by examining its …

New Physics With Ultra-High Energy Neutrinos, Yicong Sui

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Ultra-high energy (UHE) astrophysical neutrinos are unique in the sense that they are the

only known particles that could travel through incredibly long distance unattenuated, with

TeV to EeV energy, much higher than the most powerful man-made collider could provide.

The detection of these UHE neutrinos has ushered a new era in neutrino astrophysics, as they

carry important information directly from the inside of energetic astrophysical objects. On the

other hand, from the particle physics point of view, the UHE neutrinos also offer a new window

of opportunity for studying beyond the Standard Model (BSM) phenomena. This is the main …

X-Rays From Warped Black Hole Accretion Disks, Quincy Abarr

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis, I present the results from my research to better understand accretion onto black holes and neutron stars based on spectropolarimetric X-ray observations.

I have developed a general relativistic ray-tracing code which simulates X-rays from warped accretion disks around black holes.

I used this to predict the polarization of the thermal X-ray emission and the energy spectrum the reflected power law emission.

Both of these can be used to measure properties of black hole systems, such as the spin parameter and the inclination of the observer to its spin axis.

My results enable the measurement of these parameters …

Separating Signal From Noise In High-Density Diffuse Optical Tomography, Arefeh Sherafati

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

High-density diffuse optical tomography (HD-DOT) is a relatively new neuroimaging technique that detects the changes in hemoglobin concentrations following neuronal activity through the measurement of near-infrared light intensities. Thus, it has the potential to be a surrogate for functional MRI (fMRI) as a more naturalistic, portable, and cost-effective neuroimaging system. As in other neuroimaging modalities, head motion is the most common source of noise in HD-DOT data that results in spurious effects in the functional brain images. Unlike other neuroimaging modalities, data quality assessment methods are still underdeveloped for HD-DOT. Therefore, developing robust motion detection and motion removal methods in …

Specificity Of Ssb Binding To Its Interacting Proteins And Multiple Allosteric Effects Of Ssb C-Terminal Tail On Assembly And Dna Binding Of E. Coli Recor Proteins, Min Kyung Shinn

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The homo-tetrameric E. coli single strand (ss) DNA binding (SSB) protein is an essential component in DNA maintenance for its role in binding and protecting single stranded DNA intermediates via its N-terminal DNA binding domain (DBD). SSB also acts as a hub to recruit at least 17 SSB interacting proteins (SIPs) involved in DNA replication, recombination, and repair via its 9 amino acid C-terminal acidic tip region. A 56 amino acid intrinsically disordered linker connects the DBD and the acidic tip and plays a role in cooperative binding to ssDNA. Using isothermal titration calorimetry, I determined that the SSB-Ct peptides …

Thermophysical Properties And Phase Transformations In Metallic Liquids And Silicate Glasses, Daniel Christian Van Hoesen

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The first quantitative measurements of the electrical resistivity in binary metallic liquids, used to probe local order in the liquid, are reported in this dissertation. The electrical resistivity is very sensitive to short and medium range ordering because the electron mean free path is approximately the same length scale as the atomic spacing. Particular attention is given to the resistivity value at a crossover temperature that, based on molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, is the onset of cooperative motion in liquid alloys. Experimental evidence for the crossover is found in measurements of the shear viscosity, a dynamical property. An indication of …

Supertiger Elemental Abundances For The Charge Range $41 \Leq Z \Leq 56$, Nathan Elliot Walsh

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Measurement, Dissipation, And Quantum Control With Superconducting Circuits, Patrick Harrington

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The interaction between a superconducting circuit and its environment can cause decoherence. However, interactions with an environment are necessary for quantum state preparation and measurement. Through the dynamics of open quantum systems, the environment is a resource to control and readout superconducting circuit states. I present an experimental result demonstrating qubit state stabilization from engineered dissipation with a microwave photonic crystal. In addition, I discuss the statistical arrow of time in the dynamics of continuous quantum measurement. These results demonstrate an interplay between open quantum system dynamics and statistics, which highlights the role of both dissipation and measurement for quantum …

Transport In Neutron Star Mergers, Steven Patrick Harris

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Neutron star mergers are the only situation in nature in which we find matter compressed to several times nuclear saturation density and temperatures of several tens of MeV. By observing and numerically simulating neutron star mergers, we can learn about the nature of matter at high temperatures and densities. Neutron star merger simulations evolve Einstein's equations of general relativity coupled to the equations of relativistic hydrodynamics along with a nuclear equation of state, which describes the neutron star matter. Many simulations also take into account neutrino transport and electrodynamics. The purpose of this thesis is to see whether other physical …

Applications Of Nonlinear Dynamics, And Critical Phenomena To Measure Neural Populations Using Inputs To Single Neurons, James Kenneth Johnson

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A compelling vision for the future of neuroscience is the ability to sense neural activity throughout the bulk of the brain with exquisite resolution. Popular visions usually include intricate electrode technology intruding into the neuropil, meandering along nerve tracts, and sensing the whole brain. These popular visions stem from the belief that we must always have an outsider’s perspective of neural activity. According to this belief the closest thing neuroscientists can achieve to an insider’s perspective is to shadow every neuron (or almost every neuron) with an electrical or optical recording device. Yet, the brain naturally has an expansive sensor …

Molecular Insights Into Microbial Adhesion, Roger Davies Klein

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections are a serious and immediate threat to global public health. In the United States alone, over 2 million individuals develop antibiotic-resistant infections annually, resulting in 23,000 deaths and $20 billion in excess health care costs. Virulence factors that allow bacteria to invade and persist within the host are promising targets for novel antimicrobial agents that could be used to curb the spread of antibiotic resistance. Development of therapeutics that can selectively eliminate pathogenic bacteria while sparing the beneficial host microbiota requires a detailed molecular understanding of critical virulence factors that facilitate interactions between pathogens and their environments. …

Phantoms To Placentas: Mr Methods For Oxygen Quantification, Kelsey Meinerz

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Molecular oxygen (O2) is vital for efficient energy production and improper oxygenation is a hallmark of disease or metabolic dysfunction. In many pathologies, knowledge of tissue oxygen levels (pO2) could aid in diagnosis and treatment planning. The gold standard for pO2 measures in tissue are implantable probes, which are invasive, require surgery for placement, and are inaccessible to certain regions of the body. Methods for determining pO2 both non-invasively and quantitatively are lacking. The slight paramagnetic nature of O2 provides opportunities to non-invasively characterize pO2 in tissue via magnetic resonance (MR) techniques. As such, O2 can be treated as a …

Studies Of Maximum Supercooling And Stirring In Levitated Liquid Metallic Alloys, Mark Edward Sellers

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Nucleation—or the formation of some cluster in a medium undergoing a phase transition—is usually the initial step in a phase transition. However, this process is still not fully understood, as outstanding questions related to the role of structure, local order, and diffusion remain unanswered. Systematic supercooling studies on metallic liquids performed using electrostatic and electromagnetic (ESL and EML, respectively) will be presented and discussed within the context of several nucleation theories, such as the Classical Nucleation Theory, Diffuse Interface Theory, and Coupled-Flux theory. To study the role of diffusion on nucleation, studies on the International Space Station using the on-board …