Atomic level phenomena on transition metal surfaces

In this study we discuss the atomic level phenomena on transition metal surfaces. Transition metals are widely used as catalysts in industry. Therefore, reactions occuring on transition metal surfaces have large industrial intrest. This study addresses problems in very small size and time scales, which is an important part in the overall understanding of these phenomena. The publications of this study can be roughly divided into two categories: The adsorption of an O2 molecule to a surface, and surface structures of preadsorbed atoms. These two categories complement each other, because in the realistic case there are always some preadsorbed atoms at the catalytically active surfaces. However, all transition metals have an active d-band, and this study is also a study of the in uence of the active d-band on other atoms. At the rst part of this study we discuss the adsorption and dissociation of an O2 molecule on a clean stepped palladium surface and a smooth palladium surface precovered with sulphur and oxygen atoms. We show how the reactivity of the surface against the oxygen molecule varies due to the geometry of the surface and preadsorbed atoms. We also show how the molecular orbitals of the oxygen molecule evolve when it approaches the di erent sites on the surface. In the second part we discuss the surface structures of transition metal surfaces. We study the structures that are intresting on account of the Rashba e ect and charge density waves. We also study the adsorption of suphur on a gold surface, and surface structures of it. In this study we use ab-initio based density functional theory methods to simulate the results. We also compare the results of our methods to the results obtained with the Low-Energy-Electron-Difraction method.

Polymer surface modification by atomic layer deposition

Current industrial atomic layer deposition (ALD) processes are almost wholly confined to glass or silicon substrates. For many industrial applications, deposition on polymer substrates will be necessary. Current deposition processes are also typically carried out at temperatures which are too high for polymers. If deposition temperatures in ALD can be reduced to the level applicable for polymers, it will open new interesting areas and applications for polymeric materials. The properties of polymers can be improved for example by coatings with functional and protective properties. Although the ALD has shown its capability to operate at low temperatures suitable for polymer substrates, there are other issues related to process efficiency and characteristics of different polymers where new knowledge will assist in developing industrially conceivable ALD processes. Lower deposition temperature in ALD generally means longer process times to facilitate the self limiting film growth mode characteristic to ALD. To improve process efficiency more reactive precursors are introduced into the process. For example in ALD oxide processes these can be more reactive oxidizers, such as ozone and oxygen radicals, to substitute the more conventionally used water. Although replacing water in the low temperature ALD with ozone or plasma generated oxygen radicals will enable the process times to be shortened, they may have unwanted effects both on the film growth and structure, and in some cases can form detrimental process conditions for the polymer substrate. Plasma assistance is a very promising approach to improve the process efficiency. The actual design and placement of the plasma source will have an effect on film growth characteristics and film structure that may retard the process efficiency development. Due to the fact that the lifetime of the radicals is limited, it requires the placement of the plasma source near to the film growth region. Conversely this subjects the substrate to exposure byother plasma species and electromagnetic radiation which sets requirements for plasma conditions optimization. In this thesis ALD has been used to modify, activate and functionalize the polymer surfaces for further improvement of polymer performance subject to application. The issues in ALD on polymers, both in thermal and plasma-assisted ALD will be further discussed.

Marketing-Sales Cooperation and its Relation on Direct Sales Performance: an Example of a Medium-sized Oil Company

The study touches upon marketing-sales departments’ cooperation and investigates marketing-sales cooperative model within the case company. So that research increases understanding of linkages between Marketing and Sales departments with an illustrative example of Russian medium-sized oil company (LLC Neste St. Petersburg), the subsidiary of Finnish-based Neste Oil. The empirical study is done from marketing and sales perspectives. And for sales main attention was brought to direct sales, both B2B and B2C. Research considers all five domains of cooperation, and among others, study reveals the attitude towards external (market) and internal (product) knowledge, and its mutual use by marketing and sales managers. A qualitative research method, participant observations, and in-depth interviews with upper-management made it possible to explore all facets of joint work. Moreover, research responses the changes in a model of cooperation between marketing and sales when moving from medium size to large company.

Spin-Dynamics in Cold Gases of 87Rb and Atomic Hydrogen. The spins they are a-changin’

In this thesis the dynamics of cold gaseous atoms is studied. Two different atomic species and two different experimental techniques have been used. In the first part of the thesis experiments with Bose-Einstein condensates of Rb-87 are presented. In these experiments the methods of laser cooling and magnetic trapping of atoms were utilized. An atom chip was used as the experimental technique for implementation of magnetic trapping. The atom chip is a small integrated instrument allowing accurate and detailed manipulation of the atoms. The experiments with Rb-87 probed the behaviour of a falling beam of atoms outcoupled from the Bose-Einstein condensate by electromagnetic field induced spin flips. In the experiments a correspondence between the phases of the outcoupling radio frequency field and the falling beam of atoms was found. In the second part of the thesis experiments of spin dynamics in cold atomic hydrogen gas are discussed. The experiments with atomic hydrogen are conducted in a cryostat using a dilution refrigerator as the cooling method. These experiments concentrated on explaining and quantifying modulations in the electron spin resonance spectra of doubly polarized atomic hydrogen. The modifications to the previous experimental setup are described and the observation of electron spin waves is presented. The observed spin wave modes were caused by the identical spin rotation effect. These modes have a strong dependence on the spatial profile of the polarizing magnetic field. We also demonstrated confinement of these modes in regions of strong magnetic field and manipulated their spatial distribution by changing the position of the field maximum.

Working capital management in the small and medium-sized enterprises Case: Project-based business environment in Flowrox Oy

This Master´s thesis illustrates how growing a business ties up the company´s working capital and what the cost of committed capital. In order to manage a company´s working capital in rapid business growth phase, the thesis suggests that by monitoring and managing the operating and cash conversion cycles of customers´ projects, a company can find ways to secure the required amount of capital. The research method of this thesis was based on literature reviews and case study research. The theoretical review presents the concepts of working capital and provides the background for understanding how to improve working capital management. The company in subject is a global small and medium-sized enterprise that manufactures pumps and valves for demanding process conditions. The company is expanding, which creates lots of challenges. This thesis concentrates to the company´s working capital management and its efficiency through the supply chain and value chain perspective. The main elements of working capital management are inventory management, accounts receivable management and accounts payable management. Prepayments also play a significant role, particularly in project-based businesses. Developing companies´ working capital management requires knowledge from different kind of key operations´ in the company, like purchasing, production, sales, logistics and financing. The perspective to develop and describe working capital management is an operational. After literature reviews the thesis present pilot projects that formed the basis of a model to monitor working capital in the case company. Based on analysis and pilot projects, the thesis introduces a rough model for monitoring capital commitments in short time period. With the model the company can more efficiently monitor and manage their customer projects.

Entrepreneurial orientation in small and medium-sized enterprises during economic crisis

The economic importance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurship has increased significantly in recent decades and entrepreneurial activity and SMEs are deemed vital to economic progress. Therefore, it is justifiable to study how small firms and entrepreneurs can enhance their performance and emergence in the turbulent economic environment. The concept of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) has recently attracted considerable attention in the field of entrepreneurship research. EO generally refers to a firm’s propensity to be innovative, to be proactive and to take risks. A majority of EO studies so far have found that adopting EO associated entrepreneurial behaviors will help firms to create or sustain a high level of performance. This dissertation explores the main drivers and performance implications of EO for SMEs in time of economic crisis. Hence the first objective of this dissertation is to examine the performance implications of EO and to test the role of EO on how firms are treated by the crisis at operative level. The second objective is to expand the prevailing understanding of determinants of EO by exploring the relationship between owner's work related values, attitudes, demographic characteristics, firm’s financial resources and EO. EO was found to be a significant and positive factor behind a firm’s long run growth. Hence it can be said that EO has positive implications for firm performance. But on the other hand, during a time of economic crisis the different dimensions of EO had both positive and negative effects on performance of SMEs. The performance implications varied across different stages of the crisis and were also dependent on what measure was used for measuring the performance. The main drivers of EO in SMEs were the personal work related values of the entrepreneur and his/her prior experience as an entrepreneur. The intrinsic work values related to interest, responsibility, challenge, self-development or intellectual stimulation and values related to status, power, achievement and recognition had a positive effect on the level of EO. On the other hand, extrinsic values related to high income, material possessions, benefits such as generous holidays, job security, and comfort through good working conditions decreased the level of EO

Russia, China, India Foresight for Small and Medium size Enterprises in Uusimaa : Changes forecast in the Russian, Chinese and Indian operating environments from the viewpoint of small and middle-sized enterprises in Uusimaa

The report describes those factors of the future that are related to the growth and needs of Russia, China, and India and that may provide significant internationalisation potential for Uusimaa companies. The report examines the emerging trends and market-entry challenges for each country separately. Additionally, it evaluates the training needs of Uusimaa companies in terms of the current offerings available for education on topics related to Russia, China, and India. The report was created via the Delphi method: experts were interviewed, and both Trendwiki material and the latest literature were used to create a summary of experts’ views, statements, and reasons behind recent developments. This summary of views was sent back to the experts with the objective of reaching consensus synthesising the differing views or, at least, of providing argumentation for the various alternative lines of development. In addition to a number of outside experts and business leaders, all heads of Finpro’s Finland Trade Centers participated in the initial interviews. The summary was commented upon by all Finpro consultants and analysts for Russia, China, and India, with each focusing on his or her own area of expertise. The literature used consisted of reports, listed for each country, and an extensive selection of the most recent newspaper articles. The report was created in January-April 2010. On 22 April 2010 its results were reviewed at the final report presentation in cooperation with the Uusimaa ELY Centre.

Internationalization of small and medium-sized enterprises and impact of institutions on international entrepreneurship in emerging economies: the case of Russia

The doctoral study presents a comprehensive analysis of the impact of the institutional environment on the internationalization-based growth strategic choices of small and mediumsized enterprises (SMEs) in emerging economies. In responding to the calls for more research on institutions and international entrepreneurship, this dissertation extends the linkages between the two to the context of emerging economies. The study presents a comprehensive analysis of institutional challenges and their impact on the internationalization of SMEs in emerging economies, particularly in Russia. The research contributes to the adoption of the institution-based view in international entrepreneurship. The dissertation is presented through five research papers. Based on primary and secondary data, the study categorizes the possible sources of institutional influences on internationalization and empirically tests their impact by applying a method triangulation research design. The result of the conducted research is a proposed theoretical model of the institutional impact on the internationalization of SMEs in emerging economies. The model is specifically focused on the growth stage of the entrepreneurial process and considers only its internationalization facet. The research identifies and provides empirical support for the existence of a positive influence of a transparent and supportive regulatory environment, an institutionalized pool of general business knowledge, and collectivistic value orientation on the proclivity of SMEs to internationalize. A level of appreciation of entrepreneurial initiatives in home country and a greater positive institutional gap provide a positive impact on the international performance of SMEs. The research provides contextualized knowledge of the institutional impact on the internationalization of SMEs in Russia. The obtained results present theoretical value in terms of showing how the environmental conditions effect the entrepreneurial internationalization-based growth in emerging economies, providing the methodological insights into the measurement of the institutional effects, and empirically contextualizing the linkage between institutions and internationalization in the Russian business environment. The research also provides value for the business and policy making stakeholders by identifying ways of utilizing the conditions in the external institutional environment.

ERP Systems: Marketing to Finnish Small and Medium Sized Enterprises

This paper takes a fresh approach to ERP projects by examining the upstream organizations and their sales and marketing processes.