An RF-powered, wireless CMOS temperature sensor

We present a wireless, fully integrated CMOS temperature sensor that recovers power from a radio frequency (RF) signal, and returns data as a frequency-modulated 2.3-GHz signal to a base station. Power is recovered from a 450-MHz incident signal with the help of a low-threshold, high-efficiency, voltage rectifier-multiplier circuit. This technique decreases the minimum incident RF power required, compared to state-of-the-art wirelessly powered telemetry systems. The rectifier-multiplier can collect energy from a base station placed up to 18 m away. To further increase the range from the base, the device collects energy in a low power standby/charging mode. A mode selector circuit monitors the amount stored energy and decides if the system is transmitting data or is in the standby/charging mode. A bootstrapped reference generates a complementary to absolute temperature (CTAT) voltage with an R-squared regression of 0.9995 to a linear fit. This reference is used as the temperature sensor of the system, controlling a low-power, integrated, voltage-controlled LC oscillator (VCO). The oscillation frequency of the VCO is modulated by ambient temperature changes. The modulated carrier is transmitted by a fully integrated power amplifier. A temperature sensitivity of 126 ppm//spl deg/C is achieved and the entire sensor consumes 1.1 mA while transmitting data.     

A wireless, passive carbon nanotube-based gas sensor

A gas sensor, comprised of a gas-responsive multiwall carbon nanotube (MWNT)-silicon dioxide (SiO₂) composite layer deposited on a planar inductor-capacitor resonant circuit is presented here for the monitoring of carbon dioxide (CO₂), oxygen (O ₂), and ammonia (NH₃). The absorption of different gases in the MWNT-SiO₂ layer changes the permittivity and conductivity of the material and consequently alters the resonant frequency of the sensor. By tracking the frequency spectrum of the sensor with a loop antenna, humidity, temperature, as well as CO₂ , O₂ and NH₃ concentrations can be determined, enabling applications such as remotely monitoring conditions inside opaque, sealed containers. Experimental results show the sensor response to CO₂ and O₂ is both linear and reversible. Both irreversible and reversible responses are observed in response to NH₃, indicating both physisorption and chemisorption of NH₃ by the carbon nanotubes. A sensor array, comprised of an uncoated, SiO₂ coated, and MWNT-SiO₂ coated sensor, enables CO₂ measurement to be automatically calibrated for operation in a variable humidity and temperature environment     

PDC-SiBCN陶瓷基无线无源温度传感器的性能EI北大核心CSCD

以耐高温聚合物先驱体陶瓷(PDC-SiBCN)为温敏介质材料,金属铂作为谐振腔材料,并在陶瓷表面开槽形成共面天线,制备出集开槽天线与谐振器一体的无线无源温度传感器,实现温度信息的无线无源传输。结果表明:传感器的谐振频率随测试温度的升高呈单调递减变化,PDC-SiBCN陶瓷的介电常数随温度的升高而单调增加,其中热解温度为1000℃的传感器测试温度达1100℃,具有优异的耐高温性和介温特性。同一测试温度下传感器的谐振频率随直径的增大而减小,也随热解温度的升高而降低。通过对传感器的谐振频率-温度拟合曲线进行一阶偏导得到灵敏度方程,传感器在1100℃的高温下有较高的灵敏度。传感器具有良好的循环稳定性能,在室温下实际无线传输距离达到42 mm,当测试温度为1100℃时传输距离可达8 mm,可应用于高温恶劣环境下航空发动机的温度监控。     

面向传感网可信检测的协同感知策略

为了提高基于传感器网络的目标检测的检测精度和尽可能延长网络的寿命,将满足用户对检测精度要求的检测定义为可信检测,并提出了一种面向可信检测的协同感知策略。该策略首先对传感器的相关性及感知能力差异性进行定量分析,发现它们与传感器簇的感知性能的关联性,为实现传感器的协同选择提供依据;然后用一种分布式传感器协同选择方法进行传感器协同选择:根据传感器相关性、感知能力差异性及剩余能量来计算节点的重要性,之后按节点重要性选择合适的传感器。试验表明,与传统方法相比,该策略既能更好地满足用户对检测精度的要求,又能在实现能量均衡、延长网络寿命上取得更好的效果。     

Limiting phase errors of passive wireless SAW sensing with differential measurement

This paper addresses a statistical analysis of the limiting estimate errors of the time delay (phase difference) between two reflectors of the passive wireless surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensor with single differential measurement. The estimation is provided in a sense of the maximum likelihood function at the ideal coherent receiver in the presence of Gaussian noise. Assuming the Gauss-shape interrogating radio frequency pulse, we prove that linear drifts in its amplitude and phase do not affect the distribution of the sensor phase (and phase difference) at the measurement point. Rigorous and approximate solutions for the mean and mean-square errors, along with the error probability for the estimate to exceed a threshold, are studied in detail. The plots are applied to evaluate the errors in a wide range of signal-to-noise ratios and thresholds. Practical recommendations for designers of the remote SAW sensor interrogating systems are also given.     

A multi-resolution wireless force sensing system based upon a passive SAW device

Referring to the technology of SAW wireless identification systems, a multi-resolution wireless force sensing system, including a passive time-delay SAW device and a specific interrogation unit, is introduced in this paper. Using an IDT, which connects with an antenna, as the force sensing element is a design to transduce the electromagnetic wave into surface acoustic wave and vice versa. Several reflectors are designed to get multi-resolution. Sample/hold devices are used instead of high-speed A/D converter to construct a low-cost interrogation system. Properties of the sensing system are theoretically predicted and experimentally verified.     

Approximate estimates of limiting errors of passive wireless SAW sensing with DPM

This paper discusses approximate statistical estimates of limiting errors associated with single differential phase measurement of a time delay (phase difference) between two reflectors of the passive surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensor. The remote wireless measurement is provided at the ideal coherent receiver using the maximum likelihood function approach. Approximate estimates of the mean error, mean square error, estimate variance, and Cramér-Rao bound are derived along with the error probability to exceed a threshold in a wide range of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) values. The von Mises/Tikhonov distribution is used as an approximation for the phase difference and differential phase diversity. Simulation of the random phase difference and limiting errors also is applied.     

Multistrip couplers for surface acoustic wave sensor application

We present a new surface acoustic wave gas sensor utilizing a multistrip coupler on LiNbO₃ and LiTaO₃ substrates and using copper phthalocyanine as a sensor layer for NO₂. The sensor signal originates from surface conductivity changes induced by the adsorbed NO₂. This variation in conductivity leads to a changing coupling efficiency of the multistrip coupler and thus to variations in the insertion loss of the device. Rayleigh and shear wave devices with operating frequencies of 170 and 243 MHz have been tested. A sensitivity of better than 1 ppb NO₂ in air was achieved     

ZnO nanomaterials based surface acoustic wave ethanol gas sensor

ZnO nanomaterials based surface acoustic wave (SAW) gas sensor has been investigated in ethanol environment at room temperature. The ZnO nanomaterials have been prepared through thermal evaporation of high-purity zinc powder. The as-prepared ZnO nanomaterials have been characterized with scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD) techniques. The results indicate that the obtained ZnO nanomaterials, including many types of nanostructures such as nanobelts, nanorods, nanowires as well as nanosheets, are wurtzite with hexagonal structure and well-crystallized. The SAW sensor coated with the nanostructured ZnO materials has been tested in ethanol gas of various concentrations at room temperature. A network analyzer is used to monitor the change of the insertion loss of the SAW sensor when exposed to ethanol gas. The insertion loss of the SAW sensor varies significantly with the change of ethanol concentration. The experimental results manifest that the ZnO nanomaterials based SAW ethanol gas sensor exhibits excellent sensitivity and good short-term reproducibility at room temperature.     

Inductively coupled surface acoustic wave device for sensor application

We present a new type of surface acoustic wave device for sensor applications where the need for bonding wires is eliminated. Instead the device is coupled inductively to the RF circuitry. The impedance of such devices and the necessary matching have been investigated both theoretically and experimentally. The devices have repeatedly been operated at temperatures up to 400 degrees C and have shown a good temperature resistance. In order to test the suitability of the new concept for sensor applications, several devices with an operating frequency of 363 MHz were coated with copper phthalocyanine for the detection of NO(2). From these measurements we derive a detection limit of these devices below 1 ppb for NO(2).     

A microfluidic surface acoustic wave sensor platform: Application to high viscosity measurements

Acoustic Love wave oscillators offer a great potentiality to integrated viscosity measurements thanks to a high sensitivity and the lack of moving parts. The main limitation is insertion losses that increase with viscosity. To overcome this limitation, this paper reports the use of microfluidic techniques with a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) chip bonded on the Love wave device. Liquid flows of aqueous glycerol solutions up to 0.939 Pa s (939cP, 98% glycerol) have been tested in oscillator mode. These results are promising for the viscoelastic study of viscous liquids. Modelisation using the classical perturbation theory is discussed.     

Development of a new millimeter-wave integrated-circuit sensor for surface and subsurface sensing

A new millimeter-wave sensor employing the stepped-frequency radar technique has been developed using microwave and millimeter-wave integrated circuits and demonstrated for surface and subsurface sensing. The sensor is based on the coherent super-heterodyne scheme and operated from 29.72-37.7GHz. It has been used to profile the surface of a sample with range accuracy within /spl plusmn/0.1 cm. The sensor was also used to monitor continuously varying liquid levels in a tank and was able to detect the displacement of liquid level with less than /spl plusmn/0.1 cm error. The sensor successfully detected and located anti-personnel mines buried under sand with less than 1.8 and 0.2 cm of errors in horizontal and vertical directions, respectively.     

Chemical sensor based on surface acoustic wave resonator using Langmuir-Blodgett film

A one-port surface acoustic wave (SAW) resonators incorporating Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films has been investigated. SAW sensors are one potential applications of SAW devices. Most of the work reported on SAW sensor concerns delay lines. In this paper we characterize the mass loading effects of one-port resonators by depositing successive monolayers of LB films onto the surface. A 90 MHz SAW gas-phase sensor has been fabricated on an ST cut quartz substrate, and one-port resonator configurations have been used as the sensing element. Ultra thin monolayers of arachidic acid and arachidic acid ethyl ester have been deposited using the LB method. The resonant frequencies and the Q values have been measured as sensor response. Experimental results show that the Q values and the resonant frequencies of the one-port SAW resonator vary with film mass loading on the SAW device surface.     

Theoretical and experimental studies of a surface acoustic wave flow sensor

A novel SAW flow sensor is proposed based on pressure measurement. The relationship between the flow rate and the pressure difference along the flow path is evaluated. The results show a linear relationship between the flow rate and pressure difference, which agrees with the past research results. Strain analysis and FEM simulation show that phase delay depends linearly on the flow rate passing the SAW sensor, whereas SAW frequency decreases linearly upon the increase of flow rate. Phase delay experiment results agree with analysis and simulation, and the frequency change falls in a reasonable range around the predicted curve.     

An absorption-based surface plasmon resonance sensor applied to sodium ion sensing based on an ion-selective optode membrane

A surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sodium ion sensor using an ion optode membrane film was experimentally and theoretically described based on an absorption-based SPR principle proposed in our previous article (Kurihara, K; Suzuki, K. AnaL Chem. 2002, 74, 696-701). The sodium ion concentrations from 10(-6) to 10(-1) have been successfully determined not only by the resonance angle diagnosis of the SPR curve but also by the minimum reflectance one. The ion optode film was plasticized poly(vinyl chloride) including a neutral sodium ionophore, a pH-sensitive cationic dye, and an anionic additive. Its optical absorption intensity changed with the sodium ion concentrations. The SPR ion sensor physically measured the complex refractive index caused by the absorption in the ion optode film. We have exhaustively investigated the experimental response behavior of the SPR curve relative to the sodium ion concentrations by comparison with numerically simulated SPR curves using a three-layer Fresnel equation including experimental values for the sodium ion optode membrane film. As predicted by the absorption-based SPR principle, the SPR curve behavior of the SPR ion sensors depended on two factors: one was the relation between the excitation frequency of the light source and the absorption maximum frequency in the ion optode film while the other was the gold metallic thickness in the Kretchmann configuration. The concept and practical theory of an absorption-based SPR sensor not only have been proved by the experimental results of the SPR sodium ion sensor but also have successfully allowed flexible ion sensing in an SPR sensor, which would be very difficult without the absorption mechanism in the ion optode film.     

Single-channel shear horizontal surface acoustic wave sensor for the identification of liquid-phase substances

The principal possibility of liquid-phase substances recognition with the aid of a single-channel sensor operating on a shear horizontal surface acoustic wave (SH-SAW) delay line has been experimentally demonstrated. The SH-SAW sensor was manufactured as a SAW delay line based on a layered structure on 36°YX LiTaO₃ crystal substrate. The response signal is related to the analyt-induced change in a pulse characteristic obtained by the frequency-to-time domain transformation of one of the measured S-parameters.     

Perimeter-based coverage optimization to improve lifetime in wireless sensor networks

The most important problem in a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is to optimize the use of its limited energy provision, so that it can fulfil its monitoring task as long as possible. Among known available approaches that can be used to improve power management, lifetime coverage optimization provides activity scheduling which ensures sensing coverage while minimizing the energy cost. In this article an approach called Perimeter-based Coverage Optimization protocol (PeCO) is proposed. It is a hybrid of centralized and distributed methods: the region of interest is first subdivided into subregions and the protocol is then distributed among sensor nodes in each subregion. The novelty of the approach lies essentially in the formulation of a new mathematical optimization model based on the perimeter-coverage level to schedule sensors' activities. Extensive simulation experiments demonstrate that PeCO can offer longer lifetime coverage for WSNs compared to other protocols.     

The fractional free volume of the sorbed vapor in modeling the viscoelastic contribution to polymer-coated surface acoustic wave vapor sensor responses

Surface acoustic wave (SAW) vapor sensors with polymeric sorbent layers can respond to vapors on the basis of mass loading and modulus decreases of the polymer film. The modulus changes are associated with volume changes that occur as vapor is sorbed by the film. A factor based on the fractional free volume of the vapor as a liquid has been incorporated into a model for the contribution of swelling-induced modulus changes to observed SAW vapor sensor responses. In this model, it is not the entire volume added to the film by the vapor that contributes to the modulus effect; it is the fractional free volume associated with the vapor molecules that causes the modulus to decrease in a manner that is equivalent to free volume changes from thermal expansion. The amplification of the SAW vapor sensor response due to modulus effects that are predicted by this model has been compared to amplification factors determined by comparing the responses of polymer-coated SAW vapor sensors with the responses of similarly coated thickness shear mode (TSM) vapor sensors, the latter being gravimetric. Results for six to eight vapors on each of two polymers, poly(isobutylene) and poly(epichlorohydrin), were examined. The model predicts amplification factors of the order of about 1.5-3, and vapor-dependent variations in the amplification factors are related to the specific volume of the vapor as a liquid. The fractional free volume factor provides a physically meaningful addition to the model and is consistent with conventional polymer physics treatments of the effects of temperature and plasticization on polymer modulus.     

基于WO3薄膜的双声路声表面波型SO2气体传感器

以金属钨粉,H2O2,CH3OH和PVP(聚乙烯吡咯烷酮)为原料,利用热喷射方法在双声路声表面波器件的测量声路上制作了细微多网孔状WO3薄膜,提出并实现了一种在常温下可以实现对二氧化硫(SO2)气体进行物理吸附和解吸附的基于WO3薄膜的双声路声表面波型SO2气体传感器.声表面波器件的双声路结构消除了由于外界测量条件改变引起的测量误差,也进一步提高了传感器的可靠性和准确性.实验结果表明,该传感器具有好的重复性,在测量范围内对各种浓度的SO2气体具有好的响应特性;传感器在0.5ppm到20ppm浓度范围内的线性灵敏度大约为6.8KHz/ppm.     

Effects of sensor locations on air-coupled surface wave transmission measurements across a surface-breaking crack

Previous studies show that the surface wave transmission (SWT) method is effective to determine the depth of a surface-breaking crack in solid materials. However, nearfield wave scattering caused by the crack affects the reliability and consistency of surface wave transmission measurements. Prior studies on near-field scattering have focused on the case where crack depth h is greater than wavelength λ of surface waves (i.e., h/λ > 1). Near-field scattering of surface waves remains not completely understood in the range of h/λ for the SWT method (i.e., 0 ≤ h/λ ≤ 1/3), where the transmission coefficient is sensitive to crack depth change and monotonically decreases with increasing h/λ. In this study, the authors thoroughly investigated the near-field scattering of surface waves caused by a surface-breaking crack using experimental tests and numerical simulations for 0 ≤ h/λ ≤ 1/3. First, the effects of sensor locations on surface wave transmission coefficients across a surface-breaking crack are studied experimentally. Data are collected from Plexiglas and concrete specimens using air-coupled sensors. As a result, the variation of transmission coefficients is expressed in terms of the normalized crack depth (h/λ) as well as the normalized sensor location (x/λ). The validity of finite element models is also verified by comparing experimental results with numerical simulations (finite element method). Second, a series of parametric studies is performed using the verified finite element model to obtain more complete understanding of near-field scattering of surface waves propagating in various solid materials with different mechanical properties and geometric conditions. Finally, a guideline for selecting appropriate sensor arrangements to reliably obtain the crack depth using the SWT method is suggested.