This Licentiate thesis treats the impact of early dust on the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). The dust that is studied comes from the first generation of stars, which were hot and short-lived, ending their lives as giant supernovæ. In the supernova explosions, heavy elements, produced through the fusion in the stars, were ejected into the interstellar medium. These heavy elements condensed to form dust, which can absorb and thus perturb the Cosmic Microwave Background radiation. The dust contribution to this radiation is calculated and found negligible. However, as the dust will be produced within structures (like galaxy clusters), it will have a spatial correlation that could be used to detect it. This correlation is calculated using relevant assumptions. The planned Planck satellite is likely to be able to measure and thus confirm this correlation. / Godkänd; 2005; 20061110 (ysko)

Astrophysical observations constitute an increasingly important source of information, thanks to the high resolution of present and near-future terrestrial and orbiting observatories. Especially, the properties of matter at low temperatures and extremely high densities can only be studied by observations of compact stellar objects. Traditionally, astrophysicists distinguish between three different types of compact objects. These are white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes. Neutron stars are presumably unique astrophysical laboratories for a broad range of physical phenomena. Examples are exotic phases of matter at super-nuclear densities and hypothetical new states of matter, e.g., superconducting quark matter. This Licentiate thesis treats a subset of the exotic phases of matter that could exist in compact stellar objects. In particular, a model of three-flavour colour superconducting quark matter is derived and a signature for a new state of matter is suggested. The former is an effective so-called Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model of quark matter at high densities, which incorporates local colour and electric charge neutrality, as well as self consistently determined quark masses and superconducting condensates. The phase diagram of three-flavour colour superconducting quark matter is presented and the effect of superconducting condensates on the possible configurations of compact stars is discussed. In the second part of the thesis, it is shown that a hypothetical class of particles, so-called preons, which might be the building blocks of quarks and leptons, could allow for a new class of compact objects, preon stars. The properties of preon stars are estimated and potential methods to observe them are discussed. / Godkänd; 2005; 20070102 (haneit)

We use a map introduced by Berkovits to determine the first levels of the theta-expansion of vertex operators for leading Regge trajectory bosons in the pure spinor formalism. This expansion is then used to confirm that in the pure spinor formalism, the 3-point disc scattering of any leading Regge trajectory bosons reproduces the corresponding Ramond-Neveu-Schwarz result found by Schlotterer.

Background and purpose: Although proton therapy is becoming increasingly common as a radiotherapy modality, facilities offering proton therapy are still scarce in comparison to photon therapy. Sweden's new proton therapy facility, Skandionkliniken, is scheduled to being operation during August 2015, employing the pencil beam scanning technique. Given Skandionklinikens unique stance as the only facility offering proton therapy in Sweden as of this writing, it is important to minimize the need for measurements during quality assurance to free up beam time for patients and other endeavors. It is the purpose of this work to create a foundation for a method whereby dose distribution verification is done via Monte Carlo simulation by developing and performing simple validation of a beam model. As input for simulating a dose distribution, log files storing a wide variety of data on how the dose distribution was delivered were used. Method: GATE, an open source Monte Carlo code and built on top of Geant4, was used for all simulations. A beam model parameterizing phase space at the nozzle exit was developed. The beam model development process made use of the beam data library and log file data. Using an in house developed code to convert log file data to treatment plans readable by GATE allowed simulation of delivered dose distributions. For validation, gamma index tests were performed comparing measured and simulated dose distributions. Results: The beam model was found able to predict the spot size in almost all cases within 0.2 mm. Likewise, the beam model was able to predict the proton range within 0.2 mm. The energy spread was found to be more difficult to estimate; comparisons of simulated and measured curves for at six points around the Bragg peak yielded a maximum deviation of 0.86 mm. Several difficulties prevented easy interpretation of the results of the gamma index tests. If allowance is made for certain data manipulation, pass rates of 90% or above using the global method can be achieved for all depths and for both treatment plans scanned. Conclusion: Although some complications arose during validation, the beam model performance appears capable of producing accurate results. To produce a full product suitable for routine patient specific quality assurance, further work will be necessary. Significant computing power would also be mandatory for routine use, necessitating the acquisition of a dedicated computer cluster or using GPUs.

There has been an increasing interest in proton beam therapy (PBT) in recent years related to the advantageous depth-dose characteristics of proton beams compared to what is achievable with standard external photon beam radiotherapy (RT). With PBT, improved target dose conformity can be achieved together with a reduction in the dose to the organs at risk (OARs). This can for certain cases lead to an increased tumour control probability (TCP) at the same time as the probabilities for normal tissue complications (NTCP) and radiation-induced secondary cancers are reduced. However, there are challenges with PBT, in the form of uncertainties in the dose delivery to the patient, due to different influencing factors. These perturbing factors are contributing to the uncertainties during different steps in the RT flow process, from the treatment planning to the irradiation. In the present work, a comparative treatment planning study of PBT and photon RT for a few clinical liver- and stomach-cancer cases were performed with the aim of determining possible advantages of PBT. The treatment planning comparisons were performed by means of dosimetric evaluations and by use of tissue response models. The later included the calculation of TCP and NTCP as well as the assessment of risk of radiation-induced secondary cancer for the two compared RT techniques. A total of eleven patients previously treated with RT at Karolinska University Hospital were included in the study. Three of these patients had been treated for liver cancer and eight for stomach cancer. The photon plans which had been used in the real treatments at the hospital were taken as reference plans. The treatment planning for the liver cancer cases had been performed on conventional CT images, but 4D-CT images were used for target definition to account for the target motion.  Three distinct CT images were used in the planning of the stomach cancer cases, the original CT image study on which the photon plans had been done and two CT image studies with artificially changed physical density for some of the internal organs to simulate different possible fillings of the stomach. The extra- or reduced gas filling was drawn on the CT slices by the radiation oncologist to estimate two worst-case scenarios for changes in density within the irradiated volume. The results indicate an improved target dose conformity, dose homogeneity and sparing of OARs for the PBT plans compared to the photon RT plans for the two clinical cases studied. The sparing of the OARs was also observed in the form of decreased NTCP for the PBT plans. The PBT plans showed to be worse than the photon plans when some structures were replaced by air and water. In the case of extra air there was a shift of the higher doses beyond the distal edge of the planned proton range which caused both an increase of the irradiated volumes of sensitive normal tissues and of the maximum doses to the OARs. In the case of extra water in the stomach, the maximum range of the protons was reduced causing target underdosage.  The calculations of probabilities for radiation-induced secondary malignancies indicated a reduced risk for all the OARs with the proton plans for the liver cancer cases. For the stomach cancer cases, reduced risks were obtained for induction of cancer in the liver but an increased risk was calculated for the bowel(-)PTV, with the proton- compared to the photon-plans. The results of the calculations of risk for radiation-induced cancer in the kidneys were inconclusive. The assessment of risk of secondary cancer for other organs, not delineated in this work (to obtain the whole body risk), is needed in order to obtain more comprehensive and clinically useful results.

This doctoral thesis treats parts of the solar wind interaction with the Martian atmosphere and the water-related features known as gullies. The composition of the escaping plasma at Mars has been investigated in an analysis of data from the IMA sensor, which is a part of the ASPERA-3 instrument suit onboard the European satellite Mars Express. The goal of the investigation is to determine if there are any high abundances of escaping ion species incorporating carbon, such as in CO_2^+ . The most abundant ion species was found to be O^+ and O_2^+, followed by CO_2^+. The following ratios were identifed: CO_2^+/O^+ = 0:2 and O_2^+ /O^+ = 0:9. The escaping plasma, in form of ion beam events, has also been correlated to the magnetic anomalies found on the surface, where no clear association was found. Similar ion beams have also been detected on Venus, which does not have any crustal magnetic fields, and hence the fields are not required for the formation process of the beams. The ion beams' dependence of the direction of the solar wind convection electric field has also been studied, where a correlation was found, suggesting that the ion beams are accelerated by this field. The studies mentioned above are important in order to understand the evolution of Mars and its atmosphere, as well as plasma acceleration processes at non-magnetized planetary bodies. On 5 December 2006 the ASPERA instruments of both Venus Express and Mars Express detected a large enhancement in their respective background count level. These readings are associated with events of SEPs (Solar Energetic Particles), which are believed to be coupled with the CMEs (Coronal Mass Ejection) identified 43 ¡ 67 hours after the SEPs. The CMEs occurred on the far side of the sun (with respect to the locations of Venus and Mars), which indicates that these events can a®ect the space weather in areas situated 90 degrees in both azimuthal directions in the heliosphere with respect to the target. During this event the heavy ion outflow from the atmosphere of Mars increased by one order of magnitude, suggesting that EUV flux levels significantly affect the atmospheric loss from unmagnetized bodies. The gully formations have been investigated with data from the MOC, MOLA and TES instruments onboard the satellite Mars Global Surveyor. The features suggest that there has been fluvial erosion on the surface of Mars. The shallow and deep aquifer models remain the most plausible formation theories. Gully formation processes are important to understand since their eroding agent may be liquid water. / Godkänd; 2008; 20080206 (ysko)

The main topic of this thesis is experimental analysis of material surfaces using scanning probe microscopies. These microscopes are used for characterization through high-resolution topographical imaging, but also for controlled modification of surfaces and molecules. The surface characterization includes evaluation and development of fractal methods for surface roughness determination. The term modification is used for manipulating the structures on a microscale by scraping them with a tiny tip. The major application of this technique in the present work is the analysis of effects induced by plasma-surface interactions. Such studies are fundamental in the understanding of erosion and deposition processes on the first wall in controlled fusion devices. In this work, scanning probe microscopes were for the first time used for studying such plasma-facing materials. Both the surface structure and composition have to be known in order to evaluate new wall-materials for fusion reactors. The materials studied here are graphites, SiC/Al coatings, graphite-silicon mixtures and various silicon carbide based composites. They were all exposed to plasmas, either to lowenergy deuterium plasmas and ions in laboratory experiments, or to the plasma in a socalled tokamak. The results show the usefulness of these high-resolution microscopes in the study of plasma-surface interaction. Several other surface sensitive techniques were also applied, at the home laboratories of our collaborators, the most important ones being Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy and nuclear reaction analysis. The scanning probe microscopy in combination with the ion-beam analysis made it possible to trace fine structural features on the surfaces and to measure the surface roughness. The main results are: (i) the detection of the initial stages of bubble/blister formation on CSi mixtures, SiC/AI coatings and graphites; (ii) the morphological changes and the physical properties of the silicon carbide composites; (iii) the distinction of radiation damages on different phases of multicomponent composites; (iv) the estimation of layer thickness with scanning probe microscopy; (v) the determination of the structure of codeposited layers formed during exposure in a tokamak; (vi) the uptake of deuterium by the materials. The atomic force microscope has also been used to study the human protein spectrin, and we managed to image free spectrins with molecular resolution in an almost natural environment. The elongated spectrin macromolecule was found to be 100 rim long and 5 nm broad. Indications of a substructure were observed. The force between the sensor tip and the molecules was crucial, both for sample movement, manipulation and image resolution. Therefore, the instrument was rebuilt to operate with so called tapping-mode in liquid. Preliminary results with this method on spectrin are presented. / Godkänd; 1995; 20070410 (ysko)

The subject of this thesis is "the fundamental structure of matter, that is, the quest of understanding the deepest level of the physical world, and the interactions relevant at that level. The hope is that, as one goes deeper, the laws are going to be simpler, not necessarily in mathematical terms, but in conceptual terms. The goal is fewer and fewer ad hoc assumptions, inspiring and driving the pursuit for the fundamental structure of matter. The thesis consists of an introductory part, giving a broad overview of where the subject stands today, and of a more detailed part, containing our own contributions to the advances of this knowledge. Six reproduced papers are appended at the end. There we treat the fundamental structure of matter on three different levels. The first three papers are concerned with the inner structure of particles (hadrons) that interact via the strong nuclear force. Here we have investigated the interactions of the so-called quarks inside hadrons, taking into account also their spin structure. Besides protons and neutrons, we have also studied more exotic particles containing quarks, so-called mesons, that are only produced in high-energy collision processes. Om a more fundamental, but speculative, level we have constructed a new model for an underlying substructure common to both quarks and leptons (particles unaffected by the strong interaction), i.e., all particles that build up matter. We also investigate some of the physical consequences of this model, particularly the possibility of radiative neutrino decay. On the large scale, we analyse the origin of the so-called dark matter in the Universe, which we propose is composed out of enormous lumps exclusively made of quarks, without any "normal" hadrons. We also explore the connection of this phenomenon to the mysterious bursts of gammarays seen in astrophysics. / Godkänd; 1998; 20061123 (haneit)

We set out on the ambitious journey to fuse inflation and string theory. We first give a somewhat extensive, yet free from the most complicated details, review of string inflation, discussing concepts as flux compactifications, moduli stabilization, the η-problem and reheating. Then, we consider two specific configurations of type II supergravity; type IIB on T6 with D3-branes and O3-planes, and type IIA on a twisted torus with D6-branes and O6-planes. In both cases, we calculate the scalar potential from the metric ansatzes, and try to uplift it to one of de-Sitter (dS) type. In the IIA-case, we also derive the scalar potential from a super- and Kähler potential, before we search for stable dS-solutions.

The Light Wave Synthesizer 20 (LWS20) is an Optical Parametric Synthesizer (OPS) system used for relativistic attosecond physics research. The LWS20 performs OPS through the means of multiple two-color pumped Noncollinear Optical Parametric Chirped Pulse Amplification (NOPCPA) stages. NOPCPA is basedon the nonlinear optical effect Optical Parametric Amplification (OPA) which is only described analytically through simplified expressions. A natural route around this difficulty is through the means of numerical models. In this thesis a (2+1) dimensional simulation software [1], [2] is used to simulate the four currently present NOPCPA stages of the LWS20, operated under two different options. The simulationwill be key to the planned upgrade of the LWS20, propelling the system fromthe current 16 TW power [3] to the wanted 100 TW power domain. It is shown that the used software is able to, with some caveats, emulate the results achieved in a laboratory environment and that the two operational options are optimized under slightly different settings. Furthermore, some barely documented, albeit crucial, features of the simulation software have been exposed, indicating that it is not very well optimized for simulating the OPA processes of the LWS20. By increasing the pump energy of the simulation beyond the realisticlevel it is still possible to attain relatively realistic amplification and thus the software ought to prove a valuable tool for the planned system upgrade. Some alternative approaches to the continuation of the simulations are presented which would further increase the software’s usefulness in the process of expanding theLWS20. Historically, the LWS20 has been operated successfully under the sameconditions under the two possible operational options, but the simulations clearly show that an optimized set-up for one option is far from optimal for the other option. Therefore, there is a possibility to further optimize the LWS20, an idea worth pursuing in future experiments.