Letter Application

Date: 16 November 2009

Dear Professor, I finished my master study in the school of Chemical Science and Engineering at the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm a couple of weeks ago. I have planned to pursue education in the field of biomaterials and I would like to apply for the PhD student position recently posted on Charmers webpage. My specialization is on functional materials and I was involved in fiber and pulp technology, polymeric materials, biomaterials and material synthesis courses. I was working on my thesis at the Swedish pulp and paper research company, Innventia, and my research topic was “Quantitative stress mapping in wood fiber PLA composites using FT-IR spectroscopy”. Raman spectroscopy has almost exclusively been the preferred technique for quantitative experimental stress-analysis on the fiber level of composites. Recent advances in the use FT-IR spectroscopy at Innventia has shown that this method can be used to quantify stress or strain on the fiber level of cellulose-based fiber materials. Since FT-IR shows some advantages to Raman spectroscopy, this opens up promising possibilities for method development. My task was to investigate the stress response of the peak shift in IR spectra of cellulose fibers in sheets and in a composite and to compare with existing Raman spectroscopy results. Identifying the bonds which are responsible for load carrying is crucial to modify the fibers and achieve better properties in such kind of materials. All the questions revealed in my master thesis and my education background in the field of polymer technology inspired me to continue my carrier in this field. I have also noticed that there is a lot of knowledge gap in this research field waiting to be filled. I have great interest to devote myself and to contribute my best in this booming technology. I have also participated in a four month course in C++ programming and java script languages. My background is in chemical engineering and I was involved in a project concerning cleaner production options implementation in a textile mill in my home country, Ethiopia. I believe with the combination of my profile and passion for research, I am a strong candidate for this position. I will be waiting to hear from you and many thanks for your consideration. Kind regards,

Yonas Desta