A single self-assembled semiconductor quantum dot in a high-finesse optical microcavity - the subject of this thesis - is an interesting quantum-mechanical system for future quantum applications. For instance, this system allows trapping of an extra electron and thus can serve as a spin quantum memory,…

As an artist Clevis is fascinated by the phenomenon of place in relation to beginnings and final destinations.

Ending the United Kingdom’s (UK) forty-seven year European Union (EU) membership has fundamentally transformed its relationship with the EU. After years of tumultuous negotiations, international law now once again governs the UK’s relationship with the EU. This has resulted in a sophisticated body of…

This dissertation focuses on a new field of artistic research in which a visual artist takes on the role of researcher. The main research question is whether performance art integrated in an ecumenical service, combined with artistic directions from the artist, can enhance the religious experience of…

Who is the real creator when a musician uses AI? This was the burning question for Adam Lukawski, himself a composer. During a fascinating premiere at Amare, The Hague’s cultural hub, he demonstrated what cocreation sounds like.

The European Registry of Exonerations database provides an overview of miscarriages of justice in Europe with a view to preventing future errors.

The authors examine the handling of cybercrime cases by law enforcement officers, focusing on bottlenecks and potential improvements noted by experts in the field.

Nowadays, it is well known that hydrogen and helium (and small traces of lithium and beryllium) were created shortly after the Big Bang, while the heavier elements are created in the cores of stars at different evolutionary stages. When these stars explode as supernovae, they expel metals synthesised…

Of all the mass in our Universe, 80% is thought to consist of a hypothetical and invisible substance called dark matter (DM).

The Sun and all the stars in the night sky reside in the Milky Way galaxy. In the at-rest reference frame of the Galaxy, typical stars travel with velocities of about 100-200 kilometres per second.

In this thesis, we have studied cell images from two types of cells, including pollen grains and the immune cells, neutrophils. These images are captured using a bright field microscope and a confocal microscope.

In a new study, we found that when we are exposed to potential harm to the other person, it improves our automatic attentional processes to avoid harm to that person.

Self-assembly offers a promising route to create complex structures and materials using simple building blocks. Through, colloidal self-assembly, we can understand the governing principles of the self-assembly process and unlock its potential in diverse applications in materials science, photonics and…

The studies described in this thesis deal with glycosidases, in particular alpha-galactosidases.

Taught from primary school to the university level – where new courses on the globalization of the Arabic writing system have cropped up (Abdallah 2014) – the Arabic script, with all its orthographic peculiarities and multiple facets, continues to shape languages other than Arabic, their communities…

PhD defence

Shining a light on the nefarious netherworlds of espionage, this is the first book to concentrate on the actual techniques and technologies used by early modern spies —from ciphers to counterfeiting, invisible inks to assassination

Squatters and autonomous movements have been in the forefront of radical politics in Europe for nearly a half-century—from struggles against urban renewal and gentrification, to large-scale peace and environmental campaigns, to spearheading the antiausterity protests sweeping the continent.

Despite an increased EU role in the preparedness, monitoring and coordination of health emergencies over the past two decades, Member States’ responses to the first wave of COVID-19 were surprisingly uncoordinated. In light of calls to improve cooperation regarding future health emergencies, this article…

By growing in a soil plants change the biotic and abiotic properties of the soil in which they grow.

Promotor: G.J. Kramer Co-Promotor: E.G.M. Kleijn

Acute cardiovascular syndromes, including myocardial infarction or stroke, are the principal cause of death in the Western society. The main underlying pathology of cardiovascular diseases is atherosclerosis, which is caused by the accumulation of lipids and inflammatory cells in the vessel wall, in…

The aim of this thesis is to develop and study a robust and adaptable scaffold for supramolecular polymer self-assembly in water.

Composer Paul Craenen (1972) is actually a pianist, but as part of his PhD ceremony, he performed a composition on PVC pipes. Craenen studies the position and role of the body in music. ‘I am interested in what precedes the resulting sound’.

On 30 September 2021 Babette van Hazebroek defended her thesis 'Understanding delinquent development from childhood into early adulthood in early onset offenders'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. J.W. de Keijser and Prof. A. Popma (VUMC).

The origin and evolution of galaxies are closely linked to many different physical phenomena.

Innovation plays an essential role in firms' competitiveness and long-term success. It varies from different types, ranging from run-of-the-mill innovation that brings incremental changes to existing technologies to radical innovation that breaks from existing trajectories.

Interview with political scientist Hans Vollaard (Leiden University) about “Nexit” speculations, the strengths and weaknesses of Geert Wilders’s Party for Freedom, and the general attitude towards Europe in the Netherlands.

Streptomyces are filamentous bacteria that produce more than two-thirds of known antibiotics.

On the 2nd of July, Jiaqi Wang successfully defended a doctoral thesis. Leiden University Centre for Linguistics congratulates Jiaqi on this achievement!

Ludo Block wrote the eleventh chapter of the book 'Post-Crimea Shift in EU-Russia Relations: From Fostering Interdependence to Managing Vulnerabilities'. His chapter 'Business as Usual? Police Cooperation under a Cloud of Political Animosity' can be found on page 204 of the book.

Ramesh Ganohariti will examine legal identity in three post-Soviet aspirant states and outline four common scenarios in this article.

The thesis describes experimental steps towards reduction of friction on the macroscopic scale by scenarios of thermo- and superlubricity well-known on the nanoscale.

Lecture, Global Histories of Knowledge Seminar

Stars and planets form within cold, dense clouds of gas and dust drifting through interstellar space. Although dust makes up only a small fraction of this material, it plays a key role in shaping the chemical evolution of these environments.

Promotor: Prof.dr. J.W.M. Frenken

In this article, Kuipers and Timmermans analyze the first lady's relationship with policy problems in the period 1945-2013.

The aim of this thesis was to study phage infection in Streptomyces, focused on cell wall-deficient cells. Bacteriophages (or phages in short) attach to the cell wall of bacteria after which they replicate and lyse the host cell.

The thesis explores how interstellar chemistry evolves as a function of time and changing physical architectures during the formation of stars.

This thesis focuses on the role of chemokine receptors CXCR3 and CCR2 in the inflammatory process and infection control using the zebrafish model.

The increasing resistance of pathogenic bacteria to antibiotics necessitates the discovery of new medicines.

PhD defence

From as early as classical antiquity there has been an interplay between literature and medicine.

Across many decision-making tasks, people and animals systematically repeat (or alternate) their choices - even when the choices they make are intrinsically uncorrelated. This phenomenon (also known as 'sequential effect' or 'choice hysteresis') has been known for at least a century, and may be a stable…

Promotor: Jelle S. Kaastra Co-promotor: Jelle de Plaa

Lodewijk Petram, author of the book 'The World's First Stock Exchange', discussed the rise of the Amsterdam stock exchange in the 17th century in the ninth Hazelhoff Guest Lecture.

The origin and evolution of galaxies are closely tied to the cyclic feedback processes between stars and the interstellar medium (ISM).

What physics controls the properties of quantum matter, such as how electrons flow inside high-temperature superconductors? This question has captivated the physics community and industry for decades, in part due to the great technological potential such materials have, but also because they have resisted…

Promotor: C.A.M.J.J. van den Hondel, Co-promotor: Sandra de Weert

On November 1st, Min Liu succesfully defended her doctoral thesis and graduated. The Leiden University Centre for Linguistics congratulates Min on this great result.