This book serves as a comprehensive, up-to-date reference about this cutting-edge laser technology and its many new and interesting developments. Various aspects and trends of Raman fiber lasers are described in detail by experts in their fields. Raman fiber lasers have progressed quickly in the past decade, and have emerged as a versatile laser technology for generating high power light sources covering a spectral range from visible to mid-infrared. The technology is already being applied in the fields of telecommunication, astronomy, cold atom physics, laser spectroscopy, environmental sensing, and laser medicine. This book covers various topics relating to Raman fiber laser research, including power scaling, cladding and diode pumping, cascade Raman shifting, single frequency operation and power amplification, mid-infrared laser generation, specialty optical fibers, and random distributed feedback Raman fiber lasers. The book will appeal to scientists, students, and technicians seeking to understand the recent developments and future trends of this promising and multifaceted technology.

This book describes modern biophysical techniques that enable us to understand and examine dynamic processes of infection at the molecular level. Cutting-edge research articles, laboratory protocols, case studies and up-to-date reviews cover topics such as single-molecule observation of DNA replication repair pathways in E. coli; evolution of drug resistance in bacteria; restriction enzymes as barriers to horizontal gene transfer in Staphylococcus aureus; infectious and bacterial pathogen biofilms; killing infectious pathogens through DNA damage; bacterial surfaces in host-pathogen interactions; bacterial gene regulation by riboswitches; transcription regulation in enterobacterial pathogens; the bacterial flagellar motor; initial surface colonization by bacteria; Salmonella Typhi host restrictions; as well as monitoring proton motive force in bacteria; microbial pathogens using digital holography; mathematical modelling of microbial pathogen motility; neutron reflectivity in studying bacterial membranes; force spectroscopy in studying infection and 4D multi-photon imaging to investigate immune responses. The focus is on the development and application of complex techniques and protocols at the interface of life sciences and physics, which increase the physiological relevance of biophysical investigations.

This thesis provides the first successful study of jump diffusion processes in glasses on the atomic scale, utilizing a novel coherent technique. This new method, called atomic-scale X-ray Photon Correlation Spectroscopy or aXPCS, has only recently been proven to be able to capture diffusion processes with atomic resolution in crystal systems. With this new toolkit for studying atomic diffusion in amorphous systems, new insight into basic processes in a wide range of technically relevant materials, like fast ionic conductors, can be obtained.

This volume describes the application of fluorescence spectroscopy in polymer research. The first chapters outline the basic principles of the conformational and dynamic behavior of polymers and review the problems of polymer self-assembly. Subsequent chapters introduce the theoretical principles of advanced fluorescence methods and typical examples of their application in polymer science. The book closes with several reviews of various fluorescence applications for studying specific aspects of polymer-solution behavior. It is a useful resource for polymer scientists and experts in fluorescence spectroscopy alike, facilitating their communication and cooperation.

This volume describes prominent methodologies developed by laboratories that have been leading the field of quantitative proteomics by mass spectrometry. The procedures for performing the experiments are described in an easy-to-understand manner with many technical details that usually are not reported in typical research articles. This second edition of Quantitative Proteomics by Mass Spectrometry provides a broad perspective of the methodologies used for quantifying proteins and post-translational modifications in different types of biomedical specimens. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and thorough, Quantitative Proteomics by Mass Spectrometry, Second Edition is a valuable resource to help researchers understand and learn about the latest tools used in the study of quantitative proteomics by mass spectrometry.

This book provides a comprehensive introduction to the methods and variety of Kelvin probe force microscopy, including technical details. It also offers an overview of the recent developments and numerous applications, ranging from semiconductor materials, nanostructures and devices to sub-molecular and atomic scale electrostatics. In the last 25 years, Kelvin probe force microscopy has developed from a specialized technique applied by a few scanning probe microscopy experts into a tool used by numerous research and development groups around the globe. This sequel to the editors' previous volume "Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy: Measuring and Compensating Electrostatic Forces," presents new and complementary topics. It is intended for a broad readership, from undergraduate students to lab technicians and scanning probe microscopy experts who are new to the field.

This work investigates the energy-level alignment of hybrid inorganic/organic systems (HIOS) comprising ZnO as the major inorganic semiconductor. In addition to offering essential insights, the thesis demonstrates HIOS energy-level alignment tuning within an unprecedented energy range. (Sub)monolayers of organic molecular donors and acceptors are introduced as an interlayer to modify HIOS interface-energy levels. By studying numerous HIOS with varying properties, the author derives generally valid systematic insights into the fundamental processes at work. In addition to molecular pinning levels, he identifies adsorption-induced band bending and gap-state density of states as playing a crucial role in the interlayer-modified energy-level alignment, thus laying the foundation for rationally controlling HIOS interface electronic properties. The thesis also presents quantitative descriptions of many aspects of the processes, opening the door for innovative HIOS interfaces and for future applications of ZnO in electronic devices.

This book concisely illustrates the techniques of major surface analysis and their applications to a few key examples. Surfaces play crucial roles in various interfacial processes, and their electronic/geometric structures rule the physical/chemical properties. In the last several decades, various techniques for surface analysis have been developed in conjunction with advances in optics, electronics, and quantum beams. This book provides a useful resource for a wide range of scientists and engineers from students to professionals in understanding the main points of each technique, such as principles, capabilities and requirements, at a glance. It is a contemporary encyclopedia for selecting the appropriate method depending on the reader's purpose.

The science and technology related to semiconductors have received significant attention for applications in various fields including microelectronics, nanophotonics, and biotechnologies. Understanding of semiconductors has advanced to such a level that we are now able to design novel system complexes before we go for the proof-of-principle experimental demonstration. This book explains the experimental setups for optical spectral analysis of semiconductors and describes the experimental methods and the basic quantum mechanical principles underlying the fast-developing nanotechnology for semiconductors. Further, it uses numerous case studies with detailed theoretical discussions and calculations to demonstrate the data analysis. Covering structures ranging from bulk to the nanoscale, it examines applications in the semiconductor industry and biomedicine. Starting from the most basic physics of geometric optics, wave optics, quantum mechanics, solid-state physics, it provides a self-contained resource on the subject for university undergraduates. The book can be further used as a toolbox for researching and developing semiconductor nanotechnology based on spectroscopy.

This book describes the design, development, characterisation and application of two novel fluorescence imaging instruments based on spectrally resolved detector arrays (SRDAs). The simplest SRDA is the standard colour camera, which integrates a Bayer filter array of red, green and blue colour filters to replicate the colour sensing capability of the human eye. The SRDAs used in this book contain many more colours, ranging from 16 to over 100 colour channels. Using these compact, robust and low-cost detectors for biomedical applications opens new avenues of exploration that were not possible before, in particular, the use of spectral imaging in endoscopy. The work presented shows for the first time that not only can this new type of camera be used for fluorescence imaging, but also that it is able to resolve signals from up to 7 different dyes - a level of multiplexing not previously achieved in tissue with such compact and robust equipment. Furthermore, it reports the application of a bimodal endoscope performing both reflectance and fluorescence imaging using these cameras in an ex vivo pig oesophagus model.

This book focuses on the characterisation of the chiral and topological nature of magnetic skyrmions in noncentrosymmetric helimagnets. In these materials, the skyrmion lattice phase appears as a long-range-ordered, close-packed grid of nearly millimetre-level correlation length, while the size of a single skyrmion is 3-100 nm. This is a very challenging range of length scales (spanning 5 orders of magnitude from tens of nm to mm) for magnetic characterisation techniques, and, to date, extensive information on this fascinating, magnetically ordered state has remained elusive. In response, this work develops novel resonant elastic x-ray scattering (REXS) techniques, which allow the magnetic structure, including the long-range order and domain formation, as well as microscopic skyrmion parameters, to be measured across the full range of length scales. Most importantly, using circular dichroism in REXS, the internal structure of a given skyrmion, the topological winding number, and the skyrmion helicity angle can all be unambiguously determined. These new techniques are applicable to many materials systems, and allow us to retrieve information on modulated spin structures, multiferroic order, spin-density-waves, and other forms of topological magnetic order.

This second edition provides a cutting-edge overview of physical, technical and scientific aspects related to the widely used analytical method of confocal Raman microscopy. The book includes expanded background information and adds insights into how confocal Raman microscopy, especially 3D Raman imaging, can be integrated with other methods to produce a variety of correlative microscopy combinations. The benefits are then demonstrated and supported by numerous examples from the fields of materials science, 2D materials, the life sciences, pharmaceutical research and development, as well as the geosciences.

This book summarizes the most recent and compelling experimental results for complex oxide interfaces. The results of this book were obtained with the cutting-edge photoemission technique at highest energy resolution. Due to their fascinating properties for new-generation electronic devices and the challenge of investigating buried regions, the book chiefly focuses on complex oxide interfaces. The crucial feature of exploring buried interfaces is the use of soft X-ray angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) operating on the energy range of a few hundred eV to increase the photoelectron mean free path, enabling the photons to penetrate through the top layers - in contrast to conventional ultraviolet (UV)-ARPES techniques. The results presented here, achieved by different research groups around the world, are summarized in a clearly structured way and discussed in comparison with other photoemission spectroscopy techniques and other oxide materials. They are complemented and supported by the most recent theoretical calculations as well as results of complementary experimental techniques including electron transport and inelastic resonant X-ray scattering.

In the last quarter century, advances in mass spectrometry (MS) have been at the forefront of efforts to map complex biological systems including the human metabolome, proteome, and microbiome. All of these developments have allowed MS to become a well-established molecular level technology for microorganism characterization. MS has demonstrated its considerable advantage as a rapid, accurate, and cost-effective method for microorganism identification, compared to conventional phenotypic techniques. In the last several years, applications of MS for microorganism characterization in research, clinical microbiology, counter-bioterrorism, food safety, and environmental monitoring have been documented in thousands of publications. Regulatory bodies in Europe, the US, and elsewhere have approved MS-based assays for infectious disease diagnostics. As of mid-2015, more than 3300 commercial MS systems for microorganism identification have been deployed worldwide in hospitals and clinical labs. While previous work has covered broader approaches in using MS to characterize microorganisms at the species level or above, this book focuses on strain-level and subtyping applications. In twelve individual chapters, innovators, leaders and practitioners in the field from around the world have contributed to a comprehensive overview of current and next-generation approaches for MS-based microbial characterization at the subspecies and strain levels. Chapters include up-to-date reference lists as well as web-links to databases, recommended software, and other useful tools. The emergence of new, antibiotic-resistant strains of human or animal pathogens is of extraordinary concern not only to the scientific and medical communities, but to the general public as well. Developments of novel MS-based assays for rapid identification of strains of antibiotic-resistant microorganisms are reviewed in the book as well. Microbiologists, bioanalytical scientists, infectious disease specialists, clinical laboratory and public health practitioners as well as researchers in universities, hospitals, government labs, and the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries will find this book to be a timely and valuable resource.

This book addresses and analyzes the mechanisms responsible for functionality of two technologically relevant materials, giving emphasis on the relationship between structural transitions and electromechanical properties. The author investigates the atomic crystal structure and microstructure by means of thermal analysis, as well as diffraction and microscopy techniques. Electric field-, temperature- and frequency-dependent electromechanical properties are also described. Apart from this correlation between structure and properties, characterization was also performed to bridge between basic research and optimization of application-oriented parameters required for technological implementation. The author proposes guidelines to the reader in order to engineer functional properties in other piezoelectric systems, as well as in other similar functional materials with the perovskite structure.

This book provides the first complete and up-to-date summary of the state of the art in HAXPES and motivates readers to harness its powerful capabilities in their own research. The chapters are written by experts. They include historical work, modern instrumentation, theory and applications. This book spans from physics to chemistry and materials science and engineering. In consideration of the rapid development of the technique, several chapters include highlights illustrating future opportunities as well.

This book provides a comprehensive introduction to ferroics and frustrated materials. Ferroics comprise a range of materials classes with functionalities such as magnetism, polarization, and orbital degrees of freedom and strain. Frustration, due to geometrical constraints, and disorder, due to chemical and/or structural inhomogeneities, can lead to glassy behavior, which has either been directly observed or inferred in a range of materials classes from model systems such as artificial spin ice, shape memory alloys, and ferroelectrics to electronically functional materials such as manganites. Interesting and unusual properties are found to be associated with these glasses and have potential for novel applications. Just as in prototypical spin glass and structural glasses, the elements of frustration and disorder lead to non-ergodocity, history dependence, frequency dependent relaxation behavior, and the presence of inhomogeneous nano clusters or domains. In addition, there are new states of matter, such as spin ice; however, it is still an open question as to whether these systems belong to the same family or universality class. The purpose of this work is to collect in a single volume the range of materials systems with differing functionalities that show many of the common characteristics of geometrical frustration, where interacting degrees of freedom do not fit in a lattice or medium, and glassy behavior is accompanied by additional presence of disorder. The chapters are written by experts in their fields and span experiment and theory, as well as simulations. Frustrated Materials and Ferroic Glasses will be of interest to a wide range of readers in condensed matter physics and materials science.

This book was developed with the goal of providing an easily understood text for those users of the scanning electron microscope (SEM) who have little or no background in the area. The SEM is routinely used to study the surface structure and chemistry of a wide range of biological and synthetic materials at the micrometer to nanometer scale. Ease-of-use, typically facile sample preparation, and straightforward image interpretation, combined with high resolution, high depth of field, and the ability to undertake microchemical and crystallographic analysis, has made scanning electron microscopy one of the most powerful and versatile techniques for characterization today. Indeed, the SEM is a vital tool for the characterization of nanostructured materials and the development of nanotechnology. However, its wide use by professionals with diverse technical backgrounds-including life science, materials science, engineering, forensics, mineralogy, etc., and in various sectors of government, industry, and academia-emphasizes the need for an introductory text providing the basics of effective SEM imaging.A Beginners' Guide to Scanning Electron Microscopy explains instrumentation, operation, image interpretation and sample preparation in a wide ranging yet succinct and practical text, treating the essential theory of specimen-beam interaction and image formation in a manner that can be effortlessly comprehended by the novice SEM user. This book provides a concise and accessible introduction to the essentials of SEM includes a large number of illustrations specifically chosen to aid readers' understanding of key concepts highlights recent advances in instrumentation, imaging and sample preparation techniques offers examples drawn from a variety of applications that appeal to professionals from diverse backgrounds.

Explores the impact of the latest breakthroughs in cluster SIMS technology

Cluster secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) is a high spatial resolution imaging mass spectrometry technique, which can be used to characterize the three-dimensional chemical structure in complex organic and molecular systems. It works by using a cluster ion source to sputter desorb material from a solid sample surface. Prior to the advent of the cluster source, SIMS was severely limited in its ability to characterize soft samples as a result of damage from the atomic source. Molecular samples were essentially destroyed during analysis, limiting the method's sensitivity and precluding compositional depth profiling. The use of new and emerging cluster ion beam technologies has all but eliminated these limitations, enabling researchers to enter into new fields once considered unattainable by the SIMS method.

With contributions from leading mass spectrometry researchers around the world, "Cluster Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry: Principles and Applications" describes the latest breakthroughs in instrumentation, and addresses best practices in cluster SIMS analysis. It serves as a compendium of knowledge on organic and polymeric surface and in-depth characterization using cluster ion beams. It covers topics ranging from the fundamentals and theory of cluster SIMS, to the important chemistries behind the success of the technique, as well as the wide-ranging applications of the technology. Examples of subjects covered include: Cluster SIMS theory and modelingCluster ion source types and performance expectationsCluster ion beams for surface analysis experimentsMolecular depth profiling and 3-D analysis with cluster ion beamsSpecialty applications ranging from biological samples analysis to semiconductors/metals analysisFuture challenges and prospects for cluster SIMS

This book is intended to benefit any scientist, ranging from beginning to advanced in level, with plenty of figures to help better understand complex concepts and processes. In addition, each chapter ends with a detailed reference set to the primary literature, facilitating further research into individual topics where desired. "Cluster Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry: Principles and Applications" is a must-have read for any researcher in the surface analysis and/or imaging mass spectrometry fields.

This book emphasizes the use of four complex plane formalisms (impedance, admittance, complex capacitance, and modulus) in a simultaneous fashion. The purpose of employing these complex planes for handling semicircular relaxation using a single set of measured impedance data (ac small-signal electrical data) is highly underscored. The current literature demonstrates the importance of template version of impedance plot whereas this book reflects the advantage of using concurrent four complex plane plots for the same data. This approach allows extraction of a meaningful equivalent circuit model attributing to possible interpretations via potential polarizations and operative mechanisms for the investigated material system. Thus, this book supersedes the limitations of the impedance plot, and intends to serve a broader community of scientific and technical professionals better for their solid and liquid systems. This book addresses the following highlighted contents for the measured data but not limited to the: - (1) Lumped Parameter/Complex Plane Analysis (LP/CPA) in conjunction with the Bode plots; (2) Equivalent circuit model (ECM) derived from the LP/CPA; (3) Underlying Operative Mechanisms along with the possible interpretations; (4) Ideal (Debye) and non-ideal (non-Debye) relaxations; and (5) Data-Handling Criteria (DHC) using Complex Nonlinear Least Squares (CNLS) fitting procedures.

Mass Spectrometry: A Foundation Course is a textbook covering the field of mass spectrometry across the chemical, physical, biological, medical and environmental sciences. Sufficient depth is provided for the reader to appreciate the reasons behind and basis for particular experiments. It is uniquely and logically organised to enable the book to form the basis for a university course in mass spectrometry at the undergraduate or postgraduate level. This is achieved by combining specific core sections coupled to optional areas of study tailored to students of the chemical, physical, biological, medical and environmental sciences. Recommended course structures are provided in the front of the book.

Dedicated chapters are included on: organic mass spectrometry; ion chemistry - to emphasise the role of mass spectrometry in fundamental chemistry and physics; biological mass spectrometry including proteomics; mass spectrometry in medicine, environmental and surface science and accelerator mass spectrometry, to emphasise the importance of these areas. Each chapter concludes with key references and additional recommended reading material, making the book an excellent springboard to further study.

Highly readable, easy-to-use and logically presented, Mass Spectrometry: A Foundation Course is an ideal text for students and for those who work with mass spectrometers who wish to gain a solid understanding of the basics in modern mass spectrometry.

"From the reviews: "

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Although I am not a fan or either "eras" or "omes" you hear all the time that we now live in the era of the proteome. Setting aside the issues of what constitutes proteomics (after all people have been sequencingproteins and studying their structure for a few years nowA... ), and whether the regular appearance of reports of another organisms genome sequence prevents you from saying that we are in the post-genomic era, it is clear that the analysis of large numbers of complex protein mixtures is just about in all of our reach. This is going to be a very important way to look for molecular markers and targets in the battle against cancer.

The bedrock of proteomic analysis is mass spectrometry, which allows you to accurately measure the mass of molecules. In proteomics this can mean studying the mass of intact proteins, which can give you a clue as to their identity, and help you rapidly identify modifications. It can also mean busting the protein into many component fragments and measuring their mass, which can lead to protein identification via clever algorithms that compare measured fragment sizes to predicted ones using the genome databases.
One sign that this technology is about to become widely distributed is the appearance of relatively small softcover textbooks for beginners. These represent a reasonable first step towards initiation in this area, for those of us who left school a few years ago. There are two recent ones that I have read that I found to be particularly useful.

The first is Mass Spectrometry: A Foundation Course by Kevin Downard of Sydney, Australia.

This book covers many aspects of the field in under 200 pages, and has a handy guide to what sections are useful to individuals from different disciplines. It starts with history and concepts, and then devotes a significant amount of space to the instrumentation. This is very useful to anyone who has been to a massspectrometry meeting and trade show or even browsed the relevant companies websites. Dr. Downard covers the basics of how each variant works, and what it is best suited for, and includes discussion of single and tandem instruments. By the end you'll be able to raise your eyebrows appreciatively the next time a salesman fires an acronym and figure at you (or at least you'll know where to look it up once you have reached a safe distance). The second half of the book looks at specific applications for mass spectrometry, and here you can read selectively on what you are interested in doing. The sections on protein analysis were good primers. The book is quite mathematical throughout, and since I have no talent in this direction, the equations merely confirmed my deficiency in this area - to those of you who like it, it is there. Then at the end are a series of very useful appendices that show amino acid masses, masses of common protein modifications and websites for further reading or for protein identification, among other useful things. I recommend this book highly to anyone looking for a first port of call on the journey to mass spectrometry." [Oliver Bogler]

"From the reviews: "

"

Mass spectrometry today plays a vital role in a range of scientific disciplines including synthetic and physical organic chemistry, biological and medicinal chemistry and environmental and surface sciences.
In the past two decades, advances in instrument design and in computer control have brought the technique out of the basements of chemical laboratories and onto the bench of modern analytical laboratories. Advances in linking mass spectrometry to both gas and liquid chromatography have meantthat chromatographers have had to learn the extra dimensions of experiment that such multi-dimensional techniques can provide. Mass spectrometry is not now confined to research but is being increasingly used by environmental agencies, clinical chemistry laboratories and anywhere advanced analytical chemistry is required.

Few introductory texts have kept up with these advances, although there have been recent specialist texts on biotechnology and on LC/MS. Downard's book seeks to provide a basis for instruction of undergraduate and new postgraduate students. His philosophy has been to write introductory sections for all the basic aspects of mass spectrometry - his 'core' course - and to add sections for the major areas in which it is employed. These additional sections can be optionally added to the core course, as desired. Downard provides a menu suggesting how they can be put together. Each core section is well written and covers the basis of the science concerned very satisfactorily.

The sections that describe the different applications are necessarily condensed and the author tries to give extra reading with a good set of references.

Students who plan to use mass spectrometry in proteomic research will require much further assistance and the same goes for metabolomic/metabonomic studies and for users of quantitative analysis, but, for both, the core sections will be valuable." [Tony Mallet]

This thesis addresses elementary dislocation processes occurring in single-crystalline alloys based on Fe-Al, and investigates correspondences between dislocation distribution inside crystals characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and surface patterns observed using atomic force microscopy (AFM). Fe-Al alloys with different degrees of ordering were prepared and deformed in compression at ambient temperature in-situ inside the AFM device. The evolution of slip line structures was captured in the sequences of AFM images and wavy slip bands, while cross slip at the tip of the slip band and homogeneous fine slip lines were also identified. Further, the thesis develops a technique for constructing 3D representations of dislocations observed by TEM without the prohibitive difficulties of tomography, and creates 3D models of dislocation structures. Generally speaking, the thesis finds good agreement between AFM and TEM observations, confirming the value of AFM as a relevant tool for studying dislocations.

This book mainly focuses on the study of the high-temperature superconductor Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+ (Bi2212) and single-layer FeSe film grown on SrTiO3 (STO) substrate by means of angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES). It provides the first electronic evidence for the origin of the anomalous high-temperature superconductivity in single-layer FeSe grown on SrTiO3 substrate. Two coexisted sharp-mode couplings have been identified in superconducting Bi2212. The first ARPES study on single-layer FeSe/STO films has provided key insights into the electronic origin of superconductivity in this system. A phase diagram and electronic indication of high Tc and insulator to superconductor crossover have been established in the single-layer FeSe/STO films. Readers will find essential information on the techniques used and interesting physical phenomena observed by ARPES.

Mass Spectrometry: Principles and Applications, Third Edition

Edmond de Hoffmann, "UniversitAA(c) Catholique de Louvain, Belgium" and Vincent Stroobant, "Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Brussels Branch, Belgium."

"Mass Spectrometry, Third Edition" provides students with a complete overview of the principles, theories and key applications of modern mass spectrometry. Extensively revised and updated, the third edition of this successful textbook focuses on recent developments in techniques and applications. All instrumental aspects of mass spectrometry are clearly and concisely described. Emphasis is placed throughout the text on practical application examples. As with previous editions, it contains numerous tables of useful data, references and a series of exercises of increasing difficulty to encourage student understanding.

Provides a complete overview of the principles, theories and applications of modern mass spectrometry

An extensive revision and update including: increased coverage of MALDI and ESI, resolution and mass accuracy and activation of ions

New material about instruments such as linear traps, Orbitrap, TOF/TOF, hybrid instruments, and about new atmospheric ionisation techniques such as APPI, DESI, DART. The range of applications has been expanded and newer methods such as metabolome are included

Contains numerous examples and exercises to encourage student understanding

"Mass Spectrometry: Principles and Applications, Third Edition" will prove invaluable to undergraduates and postgraduates using this technique in departments of chemistry, biochemistry, medicine, pharmacology, agriculture, materials science and food science. It will alsoappeal to researchers looking for an overview of the latest techniques and developments.

This volume covers invited papers presented during the La Rabida 2015 International Scientific Meeting on Nuclear Physics, which can be considered heir of a well known series of triennial international summer schools on Nuclear Physics organized from 1982 till 2003 by the Basic Nuclear Physics group in the University of Sevilla. The La Rabida 2015 meeting offered to graduate students and young researchers a broad view of the field of Nuclear Physics. The first invited speaker presented the state-of-the-art of Relativistic Mean Field calculations. The second set of notes covers selected topics in gamma ray spectroscopy with exotic nuclei. The third speaker presented an introduction to the subject of severe accidents in nuclear power plants. In the fourth set of notes, the author illustrated how to use laser spectroscopy to determine very important observables of atomic nuclei. The fifth speaker devoted its notes to explain several aspects of neutrino physics. Finally, the sixth speaker presented an overview of nuclear medicine and radiodiagnostic. In addition to this, the inclusion of the posters and seminars presented by the students gives a fresh and ample perspective on the many different problems of interest nowadays for the Nuclear Physics community.