Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / In this thesis, SiN films grown on Si substrates were characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The stress in SiN films can be used to enhance of mobility of electrons and holes which increases the performance of metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) transistors. The samples used in this study were prepared by Applied Materials using chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique with different growth parameters. The stress of the samples varied from 1.3 GPa compressive to 1 GPa tensile depending on the growth conditions employed. The FTIR measurement showed three distinct absorption peaks associated with Si-N, Si-H and N-H vibrational modes. The hydrogen was unintentionally incorporated into the SiN film during the CVD process due to its use as the carrier gas for the precursors. It was found from the FTIR data that the area under Si-H and N-H peaks (amount of bonds) varies in opposite directions when the film stress changes from compressive to tensile. In addition, the peak position of the Si-H absorption shifted to higher energy while the opposite was true for N-H as the stress changes from compressive to tensile. The strength and the position of the Si-N absorption peak were found to be relatively insensitive to the stress of the film. This indicates that the amount of Si-H and N-H bonds in the film is responsible for controlling the stress of the film. The use of quantum calculation of SiN molecules with different amount of Si-H and N-H bonds was used toward understanding the experimental absorption spectra. / Lieutenant, Mexican Navy

This thesis is a collection of three essays with contributions to the intergenerational and intra-generational mobility literature. The essay on full risk insurance and measurement error examines the likelihood that measurement error may reconcile observed departures from perfect rank immobility in insurable consumption with the mobility predictions of full risk insurance, by generating spurious rank-breaking transitions. The essay shows that under certain assumptions full risk insurance predicts perfect rank immobility and that there exists ranges of error covariance matrices for which the mobility predictions of full risk insurance plus measurement error can not be rejected in the Peruvian data. A novel approach to test these mobility predictions is presented. The essay on discrete time-states Markov chain models applied to welfare dynamics shows that models with higher order may fit data better than the popular first-order, stationary model, and that the order of the chain, in turn, affects the estimation of equilibrium distributions. A best-practice methodology to conduct homogeneity tests between two samples with different optimal order is proposed, and an index by Shorrocks, based on the trace of the transition matrix, is extended to discrete Markov chain models with higher order. The essay on cohort heterogeneity in intergenerational mobility of education shows how cohort heterogeneity affects the analysis of cross-group homogeneity and long-term prospects of a welfare variable, based on transition matrix analysis. The essay compares the transition matrices of Peruvian groups divided by gender and ethnicity and finds genuine reductions in heterogeneity of the mobility regimes between male and female and between indigenous and non-indigenous groups among the youngest cohorts. The essay proposes a methodology to conduct first-order stochastic dominance analysis with equilibrium distributions and shows that among the youngest cohorts past stochastic dominance of male over females and non-indigenous over indigenous disappear in the long term.

Dans les pays du Sud, l'élevage est soumis au défi de l'augmentation de la demande en produits animaux, qui devrait doubler à l'horizon 2050. Parallèlement, face aux changements globaux en cours (climat, démographie et pression sur les ressources, urbanisation), la question de la vulnérabilité des populations qui vivent de l'élevage se pose comme une question de plus en plus forte. Cette thèse se propose d'étudier les systèmes d'élevages pastoraux au regard de ces deux enjeux, de production et de sécurisation, et de répondre à la question suivante : quelles sont les relations entre les moyens de sécurisation mis en place par les campements pastoraux et la gestion technique et économique des troupeaux ? Cette question est traitée pour le cas de la communauté rurale de Tessekre, située dans la réserve sylvo-pastorale du Ferlo, au Sénégal, en zone sahélienne. Cette zone est quasi-exclusivement dédiée à l'élevage pastoral et fournit 25 % de la viande consommée à Dakar. Une approche pluri-disciplinaire a été mise en place, associant des travaux en zootechnie système sur le troupeau et des travaux en socio-économie sur la sécurisation des ménages. Le concept de sécurisation mobilisé dans ce travail se définit comme la capacité à durer sur le long terme en mobilisant différents moyens de sécurisation que sont: l'accumulation des troupeaux ; la diversification des activités et des revenus ; la mobilité à grande distance ; l'organisation de la famille. Dans une première partie du travail, des trajectoires sur le long terme des campements, de leurs activités et de leurs troupeaux ont été établies sur 16 campements. Ces trajectoires ont permis de voir comment étaient combinés les moyens de sécurisation dans les campements et d'établir des profils de sécurisation des campements. Couplées à une analyse statistique de la diversité des systèmes d'activités pour 508 campements de Tessekre, ces étapes ont permis de caractériser la diversité des contributions des troupeaux à la sécurisation. Dans une deuxième partie du travail, un suivi zootechnique de 10 campements a permis de caractériser la conduite technique et la gestion économique des troupeaux pendant une période d'un an. Cette étude a montré que, même une bonne année sur le plan climatique, et même pour des profils sécurisés, il n'y a pas forcément d'épargne réalisée grâce au troupeau. De plus, les troupeaux ovins sont apparus très exploités. Une épargne a pu être réalisée pour une partie seulement des troupeaux bovins ; et, même s'ils sont épargnés, les bovins contribuent à satisfaire les besoins monétaires des campements. De plus, des éléments de conduite technique (gardiennage, grande transhumance au Saloum, opérations des béliers Tabaski) ont été traités et reflètent les contraintes notamment d'organisation de la main d'œuvre familiale auxquels sont soumis les éleveurs. L'étude fine des opérations Tabaski en élevage ovin montre une diversité dans les façons de commercialiser et acheter les mâles alors que la conduite est plus homogène. Seuls les profils sécurisés ont pu mettre en place des opérations de grande ampleur. Dans une dernière partie, c'est un moyen de sécurisation particulier qui a été traité : celui de la mobilité des jeunes migrants à la recherche de diversification. Des entretiens ont été menés avec 12 personnes, dans les campements et en milieu urbain. Ces entretiens révèlent les différences de points de vue au sein du campement notamment en ce qui concerne la commercialisation des animaux : entre jeunes plus attirés par les modes de vie urbains, plus « gaspilleurs » ; et chefs de famille, garants de la sécurisation des campements et plus favorables à l'accumulation des troupeaux. Ce travail permet d'établir des ponts entre la sécurisation des campements, qui est un objet plus habituel des sciences humaines et le troupeau, objet des zootechniciens. / In tropical countries, the livestock sector has to answer to a great challenge: an increase in animal products demand from the markets, which is predicted to double until 2050. Simultaneously, global changes such as climate changes, demographic increase and pressure over natural resources highlight vulnerability issues of rural population depending on livestock activities. Therefore, livestock activities have to face to this double challenge. This thesis proposes to study pastoral livestock systems regarding this double challenge. In this thesis, our aim is to answer to the following question: what are the relations between security means used by pastoral settlements and the technical and economical management of the herds? This question is applied on the rural community of Tessekre, in the sylvopastoral reserve of Ferlo, Senegal. This Sahelian zone of Ferlo is nearly exclusively dedicated to pastoral livestock activities and provides 25 % of the meat consumption of Dakar. A pluri-disciplinary approach is here presented : we associated livestock farming systems approaches to study the herd, to socioeconomic approaches in order to study the security of pastoral settlements. Concept of security used in this thesis is defined as: the ability for pastoral settlements to last over the long term, using four different security means. These security means are: accumulation of the herds, diversification of activities and incomes, long distance mobility; familial organization.In a first step, long term trajectories of settlements, their herds and activities have been established for 16 settlements. It was therefore possible to describe how the means of security were used and combined in the settlements and to establish distinct security profiles. This approach was coupled with a statistical analysis of the diversity of systems of activities of the 508 settlements in Tessekre and resulted in the characterization of the diversity of possible contributions of the herds to settlements security. In a second step, a monitoring of the herds in 10 settlements was realized during one year. This study gave data about technical and economic management of the herds. We showed that, even during a year marked by good climatic conditions, and even for secured profiles, accumulation of the herds was not always possible. High off-take rates of sheep herds were always realized during the year of monitoring. Regarding bovine herds, accumulation was possible for a part of the herds; in all cases, even if they were accumulated, bovine contributed to monetary needs of the settlements. Technical management was studied through several elements: sheepherding, long distance transhumance to Saloum, Tabaski rams sales. This study highlights constraints in the organization of familial workers. The study on Tabaski sales showed a diversity in the ways herders sell and purchase rams, whereas herd technical management is more homogeneous. Only the secured profiles are able to realize Tabaski sales at a great scale. In a third step, a particular security means was studied: the mobility of young migrants looking for diversification. 12 interviews were realized both in the settlements and in Dakar. These interviews revealed the different point of views existing in the settlements, regarding animal sales: the ones of the young more attracted by urban and consumerists ways of life and the ones of the family chieves, more attached to the accumulation of the herds, a warranty for settlement's security.

Student Number: 9602675T Master of Science in Physiotherapy. Faculty of Health Sciences / The purpose of the study was to compare the outcome in patients following primary total hip arthroplasty, between those receiving a mobility programme alone, as compared to bed exercises and a mobility programme, at discharge from hospital. Thirty-six patients were randomly allocated to either the control or experimental group using a concealed allocation process. The control group received a programme of supervised bed exercises and were mobilised according to the standard postoperative mobility protocol. The experimental group were mobilised according to standard protocol. On the third/fourth and sixth/seventh day postoperatively, patients were assessed by a blinded assessor on functional ability, pain at rest, and active range of hip flexion and abduction. The results indicated no difference in functional ability (p=0.99), pain at rest (p=0.83) and active range of hip flexion (p=0.19) or abduction (p=0.12), on the seventh/eight day postoperatively, between the control and experimental groups. In conclusion bed exercises appear to offer no additional benefit to patients post THA, during the acute hospitalisation phase. However this should not be extrapolated to THA patients who have prolonged bed rest periods postoperatively.

La prise en compte des usagers est aujourd'hui incontournable pour les professionnels en charge de la production des services de mobilité. Or, qu'il s'agisse de services traditionnels ou de nouveaux services collaboratifs comme le covoiturage, l'essentiel du travail de ces professionnels se déroule en l'absence des usagers, inaccessibles ou encore inexistants. La prise en compte des usagers se traduit alors par la mise en place d'outils variés (enquête, concertation, traitement des réclamations, communication, système d'information, etc.) destinés à représenter les usagers dans les différentes dimensions de la production du service. Au croisement d'approches interactionniste, sociotechnique et communicationnelle, cette thèse propose une lecture unifiée de ces divers outils de prise en compte des usagers en tant que travail collectif de construction d'une fiction de l'usager. Les professionnels élaborent cette fiction à l'articulation de leur travail d'interaction avec les usagers pendant lequel ils les mettent en scène et de leur travail de réflexivité pendant lequel ils les mettent en récit. Cette recherche repose sur une enquête qualitative menée chez deux producteurs franciliens de services de mobilité, constituée d'observations participantes de situations de travail et d'entretiens semi-directifs. Le premier cas est celui de l'autorité organisatrice de transport d'Île-de-France, suivie dans ses missions d'organisation du développement et de l'exploitation des services régionaux de transports collectifs. Le deuxième est celui d'une jeune start-up de covoiturage courte distance analysée au moment du lancement d'une expérimentation sur un territoire en grande couronne en partenariat avec les collectivités locales / It is now essential for professionals in charge of the mobility services production to take into account their users. However, most of the time they work in the absence of users : in the case of classic services, the users are inaccessible, and in the case of emerging collaborative services such as carpooling, they don't exist yet. Professionals then use various devices, such as surveys, consultation, claims processing, communication, or information system, in order to represent the users in the different dimensions of the mobility services production. This thesis research relies on interactionist, sociotechnical and commmunication approaches in order to give a global understanding of the production of these various devices generally taken separately. The main argument is that the professionals build a fiction in which the users become characters: they go back and forth between staging interactions with the users and reflecting on them through storytelling.This research relies on a qualitative study with two mobility services producers in the Parisian region based on participant observation of work situations and semi-structured interviews with professionals. The first one is the regional Public Transport Authority in charge of the design and the operation of the regional public transport services. The second one is a short distance carpooling start-up launching an experiment in partnership with local authorities in the outer suburbs of the metropolitan area

by Wing-kwong Tsang. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1990. / Bibliography: leaves 224-235. / ACKNOWLEDGMENTS --- p.i / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iii / LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS --- p.v / LIST OF TABLES --- p.vi / prologue ：statement of the problem --- p.1 / Chapter CHAPTER 1 --- on the shoulders of a giant : review of literature --- p.5 / Chapter 1. --- Definitions of Social Class and Measures of Socioeconomic Status --- p.5 / Chapter (a) --- The Gradational Perspective / Chapter (b) --- The Market-Relational Perspective / Chapter (c) --- The Production-Relational Perspective / Chapter 2. --- Analysis of Social Mobility --- p.27 / Chapter (a) --- Propositions of Social Mobilityin Industrialized Society / Chapter (b) --- Analyses on Social Fluidity and Openness / Chapter 3. --- Construction of Status Attainment Process --- p.39 / Chapter (a) --- Blau-Duncan Status Attainment Model / Chapter (b) --- The Wisconsin Model / Chapter (c) --- The Structural Models / Chapter 4. --- The Shoulders of a Giant---a Summary --- p.52 / Chapter CHAPTER 2 --- the study --- p.55 / Chapter 1. --- The Theoretical Framework: the Weberlan Approach to Class Structure and Social Mobility --- p.55 / Chapter (a) --- Locating the Theoretical Footing of the Study / Chapter (b) --- Economic Class; and the Measures of Socioeconomic Status / Chapter (c) --- Social Class and the Study of Social Mobility / Chapter (d) --- Class Situation and the Study of Status Attainment / Chapter 2. --- The Hong Kong Context --- p.66 / Chapter (a) --- An Outline of the Economic History of Hong Kong since the Second World War / Chapter (b) --- Differentials in Market Situations / Chapter 3. --- The Hypotheses --- p.79 / Chapter 4. --- The Data Sets --- p.82 / Chapter 5. --- Recapitulation --- p.90 / Chapter CHAPTER 3 --- BUILDING THE OCCUPATIONAL HIERARCHY --- p.92 / Chapter 1. --- The Occupational Groupings --- p.94 / Chapter 2. --- "The Criteria, for Rating" --- p.100 / Chapter 3. --- The Socioeconomic Index of Hong Kong --- p.107 / Chapter 4. --- Discussion --- p.115 / Chapter CHAPTER 4 --- IN SEARCH OF A CLASS STRUCTURE --- p.118 / Chapter 1. --- Identification of Class Boundary --- p.119 / Chapter 2 . --- 14 X 14 Mobility Table Analysis --- p.126 / Chapter (a) --- The Perfect Mobility Model / Chapter (b) --- The Quasi-Perfect Mobility Model / Chapter 3 --- 10 x 10 Mobility Table Analysis --- p.136 / Chapter 4 --- 5x5 Mobility Table Analysis --- p.147 / Chapter 5. --- Analysis of Mobility Table of Father and Son --- p.153 / Chapter 6. --- Emergence of a Class Structure / Chapter ---- --- a Summary of the Analyses --- p.164 / Chapter CHAPTER 5 --- CONSTRUCTING THE LADDER OF SUCCESS --- p.164 / Chapter 1. --- Social Background and Status Attainment / Chapter ---- --- a Test of Blau and Duncan's Basic Model --- p.168 / Chapter 2. --- Socialization and Status Attainment / Chapter ---- --- a Test of Blau and Duncan's Extended Model --- p.181 / Chapter 3. --- Structural Constraints and Status Attainment / Chapter ---- --- a Test of the Structuralist Model --- p.191 / Chapter 4. --- Achievement or Ascription ？ / Chapter ---- --- a Summary of the Analyses --- p.206 / CONCLUSION ：IS HONG KONG AN OPEN SOCIETY？ --- p.209 / NOTES --- p.220 / REFERENCES --- p.224

One of the major challenges in the field of organic semiconductors is to develop molecular design rules and processing routes which optimise the charge carrier mobility, whilst independently controlling the radiative and non-radiative processes. To date there has existed a seeming trade-off between charge carrier mobility and photoluminescence efficiency, which limits the development of some devices such as electrically pumped laser diodes. This thesis investigates fluorescence enhancement strategies for high-mobility polymer semiconductor systems and the mechanisms by which they currently display poor emission properties. Four independent approaches were taken and are detailed as follows. 1. Solubilising chain engineering It is shown that for the high mobility polymer poly(indacenodithiophene-co-benzothiadiazole), the addition of a phenyl- initiated side chain can enhance the solid-state fluorescence quantum yield, exciton lifetime and exciton diffusion length significantly in comparison to that without phenyl-addition. 2. Energy transfer to a highly fluorescent chromophore It is shown that for the high mobility polymer poly(indacenodithiophene-co-benzothiadiazole) efficient energy transfer to a more emissive squaraine dye molecule is possible despite fast non-radiative decay short exciton diffusion lengths. This results in a significant fluorescence enhancement, which in turn facilitates an order of magnitude increase of the efficiency of polymer light emitting diodes made from this material combination. 3. Energy gap engineering The well known Energy Gap Law predicts an increase in the non-radiative rate as the optical bandgap of an organic chromophore decreases in energy. In combination with this, almost all polymer semiconductors reported to date with high charge carrier mobility have low optical bandgaps. Therefore, molecular design principles which act to increase the optical bandgap of polymer semiconductors whilst retaining a high mobility were sought out. One specific system was successfully identified and showed a significant fluorescence enhancement compared to is predecessor poly(indacenodithiophene-co-benzothiadiazole) in both the solution and the solid state. It is found that the Frenkel exciton lifetime in this new system is a factor of four larger which also results in a significantly increased exciton diffusion length. An inter-chain electronic state is also identified and discussed. 4. Hydrogen substitution For some low-bandgap material systems such as erbium chromophores, high energy vibrational modes such as the C-H stretching mode can act as non-radiative pathways. The effect of hydrogen substitution with deuterium and fluorine was therefore investigated in a series of polythiophene derivative families. It was found that in the solid state, fluorescence and exciton lifetime enhancement occurred when the backbone hydrogen atoms were replaced with fluorine. However, evidence is given that this was not owing to the initial hypothesis, and is more likely owing to structural differences which occur in these substituted material systems.

Why does merit-based elite recruitment exist under authoritarianism, notwithstanding its adverse impact on elites' private interests? In my dissertation, I develop an argument that centers on the role of upward mobility in authoritarian regime dynamics. I argue that merit-based elite recruitment provides individuals from non-elite background an opportunity to move into the ruling class by effort; it enhances their perception of upward mobility and thus reduces their discontent with the status quo. An authoritarian ruler, therefore, may deliberately adopt and institutionalize meritocracy in elite recruitment to engineer limited but sustained upward mobility, which co-opts large numbers of non-elites and helps stabilize the regime. Focusing on the case of China and its national civil service examination (NCSE), I draw on qualitative, quantitative, and experimental evidence to triangulate the complex dynamic between the CCP leadership, local officials, and ordinary citizens in merit-based elite recruitment. I employ two survey experiments to demonstrate that, by imposing institutional constraints on local officials, the CCP leadership can make its commitment to merit-based recruitment credible and enforceable. Analyzing data from two national representative surveys, I find that the institutionalization of NCSE forges a widespread and persistent perception of upward mobility among citizens eligible for the exam and weakens their pressure on the regime for income redistribution; it also strengthens public support for local government and contributes to the legitimacy of the CCP regime. These findings contribute to our understanding of the effects of meritocracy under authoritarianism and highlight the importance of upward mobility in relation to regime resilience.

Within this study, the focus will be on oligoglycines. Numerous studies pertaining to the mobility and conformations of oligoglycines have been completed, as this is a driving force for the study. The oligopeptide is modeled using a “coarse-grained” model created in the Allison lab at Georgia State University [Xin,Y.,et. al, J. Phys. Chem. B 2006, 110, 1038-1045], which will be briefly explained within this paper. Oligoglycines will be studied in a few different systems, as the overall charge on the peptide and system will affect its mobility. The conclusion drawn is that the peptide adopts three different conformations based on the temperature of the system and length of the peptide; random conformation at high temperatures, and compact conformations at low temperature. Oligoglycines of length three to five amino acids adopts a cyclic conformation at low temperatures. [Allison, S., et al., J. Sep. Sci. 2010, 33, 2430- 2438.]

This dissertation aims to investigate alternative explanations for the adjustment of low-income inner-city minorities to residential locations. Particularly, this study searches for an answer to find the reason why low-income inner-city minorities do not move to residential locations with more job opportunities (suburbs). Much of the basis for the analysis in this dissertation derives from the irreversible investment theory under the assumption that moving can be considered as an irreversible investment. First, this study formulates a search model in which individuals simultaneously search for jobs and residential locations in two places: suburb and inner-city. Second, by employing The Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) and Geocode files, this study attempts to address how social capital plays a role in households’ moving decisions under the irreversibility assumption. This study presents evidence that the social capital has a negative causal effect on moving decision, that is, the high levels of social capital reduce the probability of moving.