Thesis (Ph. D.)--Florida State University, 2003. / Advisor: Dr. Michael S. Chapman, Florida State University, College of Arts and Sciences, Dept. of Chemistry and Biochemistry. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Feb. 24, 2003). Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Central Florida, 2009. / Adviser: Michael N. Leuenberger. Includes bibliographical references (p. 104-115).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2003. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Available also from UMI Company.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 119-127). Also available in print.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 127-136).

Thesis (M.S. in Applied Physics)--Naval Postgraduate School, December 2003. / Thesis advisor(s): William B. Coulson, Robert L. Armstead. Includes bibliographical references (p. 71-72). Also available online.

Thesis--Ph. D., University of Hong Kong, 1986.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 57-58).

Section to section alignment is a preliminary step to the creation of three dimensional reconstructions from serial section electron micrographs. Typically, the micrograph of one section is aligned to its neighbors by analyzing a set of fiducial points to calculate an appropriate polynomial transform. This transform is then used to map all of the pixels of the micrograph into alignment. Such transforms are usually linear or piecewise linear in order to limit the accumulation of small errors, which may occur with the use of higher–order approximations. Linear alignment is unable to correct common higher order geometric distortions, such as lens distortion in the case of TEM, and scan distortion in the case of transmission-mode SEM. Here, we attempt to show that standard calibration replicas may be used to calculate a high order distortion model despite the irregularities that are often present in them. We show that SEM scan distortion has much less of an effect than TEM lens distortion; however, the effect of TEM distortion on prior geometric measurements made over three-dimensional reconstructions of dendrites, axons, and synapses and their subcellular compartments is negligible. / text

This thesis reports laser spectroscopic studies of gas-phase transition metal dimers using laser ablation/reaction with free jet expansion and laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) spectroscopy technique. Themolecules studied in this work are palladium dimer (Pd2) and vanadium dimer (V2). Many compounds formed from these transition metals are important and functional catalysts in chemical reactions. Therefore, it is of great significance to start from the fundamental level to understand the properties and characteristics of the metal bonding and also the behavior of these metals when reacting with other chemicals. The electronic transitions of Pd2and V2in the visible region were studied. Gas-phase Pd2and V2moleculeswereproduced by laser ablation of palladium and vanadium metal rod, respectively. For the Pd2molecule, eleven vibrational bands were recorded and analyzed, and have been assigned to the 〖[17.1]〗^3 □_g□ X^3 □_u^+ transition system. The bond length and vibrational frequency of the ground X^3 □_u^+ state were determined to be 2.47 Å and 211.38 cm-1, respectively. This is the first experimental investigation of the electronic transitions of Pd2.For the V2molecule,six vibrational bands were observed and assigned to a new 〖[19.6] 〗^3 □_u^□□ X^3 □_g^□ transition system. Molecular constants for the 〖[19.6] 〗^3 □_u^□ excited state were obtained from high-resolution LIF spectra. The electronic structure of the Pd2andV2molecules was discussed in detail using molecular orbital energy level diagrams, which is important for understanding the nature of chemical bonding in these dimers. Comparison of the transition metal dimers studied in this work with other dimers is also presented. / published_or_final_version / Chemistry / Master / Master of Philosophy