An industrial view on compact modeling

Compact modeling is an area that gets more and more mature. Collaborations and standardization efforts have emerged. In this paper we present some special requirements that are important when constructing physics-based compact models. We will substantiate our statements on two recent examples, an inductor model and a MOSFET model.     

Prediction of pulmonary capillary wedge pressure and assessment of stroke volume by noninvasive impedance cardiography

Early recognition of heart failure is important because early treatment reduces mortality and hospitalization rates. In screening for this disease, there is a need for a simple, safe, and cost-effective method to obtain cardiovascular variables. Therefore we developed a noninvasive impedance cardiographic method to predict the pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP) from the impedance cardiogram. The impedance cardiographic technique, though, was originally designed for stroke volume (SV) determination. The objectives of this study were to validate both variables by comparison with the paired, invasively obtained equivalents. PCWP, measured with a pulmonary artery catheter, was related to the O/C ratio from the impedance cardiogram. The O/C ratio was calculated as the amplitude of the impedance cardiogram during diastole (O) divided by the maximum height during systole (C). Stroke volume was also calculated from the impedance cardiogram according to the equation of Kubicek (SVIC) and compared with thermodilution (SVTD). Data analysis was performed in 24 stable patients who underwent diagnostic heart catheterization. Linear regression analysis showed that the O/C ratio was strongly related to the invasively measured PCWP over a range of 3 to 30 mm Hg (r = 0.92, standard error of the estimate, 3.2 mm Hg). Between SVIC and SVTD a moderate correlation was established (r = 0.69), but after exclusion of the data from patients with an aortic valve disorder (n = 5), the correlation increased considerably (r = 0.87). No significant differences between SVIC and SVTD were found (mean difference +/- 2 SD = 1.8 +/- 28.8 ml). These preliminary observations suggest that impedance cardiography can predict PCWP and measure SV over a wide range of clinically relevant values. The combined measurement of SV and PCWP by impedance cardiography might be a clinical useful tool in screening for heart failure.     

Spatial Planning System in Transitional Indonesia

This paper discusses the interaction between institutional-cultural forces and globalizing neo-liberal ideas in the discussion on the formulation of the draft of new Spatial Planning Act in Indonesia. Although the neo-liberal ideas cannot change the whole nature of the planning system, this paper shows that they fragment the system and conflict with the existing institutional-cultural forces. It argues that the ideas of rule of law and decentralization, as promoted by the neo-liberalism, should be encouraged in order to develop a more effective planning system in Indonesia.     

Operationalising resilience for disaster medicine practitioners: capability development through training,simulation and reflection

Cognition, Technology & Work - Resilience has in recent decades been introduced as a term describing a new perspective within the domains of disaster management and safety management. Several...     

Time dependence of p-MOSFET hot-carrier degradation measured andinterpreted consistently over ten orders of magnitude

Hot-carrier degradation is measured and analyzed over ten orders of magnitude in time for three buried-channel p-MOSFET types with different oxide thicknesses. The effects of oxide charge and interface states are separated by using the charge-pumping technique. Two dominating effects are sufficient to account for the degradation. For worst case degradation, negative oxide charge and interface states are generated by electrons near the drain. This charge is distributed homogeneously over the oxide thickness and it attracts an inversion layer that extends the drain and reduces the effective transistor length logarithmically in time. Simultaneously, this inversion layer prevents substantial degradation related to the interface states, since it masks their effects. A simple model for the logarithmic time dependence is presented. At more negative gate voltages, holes cause interface states that reduce the transconductance with a power-law time dependence, comparable to the worst case n-MOSFET degradation     

Dutch and American waterway development: identification and classification of instruments for value creation

Waterways can serve society in a variety of ways. However, authorities responsible for maintenance and development of waterways often have a sectoral focus. They strive for cost-efficient solutions within their restricted scope; broader development of socio-economic value receives little attention. This can be seen in, e.g. the Netherlands and the USA. Both countries have strong national authorities responsible for the navigation function of waterways. The societal call for broader optimization is recognized, but a systemized response to this call is lacking. Nevertheless, both authorities make attempts towards increasing the socio-economic value of their capital waterway projects by deploying instruments for broader optimization. Six recent cases, in which such attempts were made, are studied with the aim of identifying and classifying the instruments deployed. Identification and classification are needed to evaluate where gaps and opportunities lie for more systemized responses. From these cases, a total of 15 instruments are identified which stimulated broad optimization. These instruments are classified by identifying the transaction characteristics associated with these instruments. The results show overlaps and voids in the domains these instruments address. For practitioners, the results can be helpful to navigate through the planning and implementation phase of waterway projects.     

Do We Need to Rethink Our Waterways? Values of Ageing Waterways in Current and Future Society

In the past canals were developed, and some rivers were heavily altered, driven by the need for good transportation infrastructure. Major investments were made in navigation locks, weirs and artificial embankments, and many of these assets are now reaching the end of their technical lifetime. Since then the concept of integrated water resource management (IWRM) emerged as a concept to manage and develop water-bodies in general. Two pressing problems arise from these developments: (1) major reinvestment is needed in order to maintain the transportation function of these waterways, and (2), it is not clear how the implementation of the concept of IWRM can be brought into harmony with such reinvestment. This paper aims to illustrate the problems in capital-intensive parts of waterway systems, and argues for exploring value-driven solutions that rely on the inclusion of multiple values, thus solving both funding problems and stakeholder conflicts. The focus on value in cooperative strategies is key to defining viable implementation strategies for waterway projects.     

High mobility two-dimensional electron gas inInP/Ga0.47In0.53As heterojunctions grown bylow-pressure organometallic vapour phase epitaxy

The two-dimensional electron gas in InP/GaInAs heterojunctions, grown by LP-OMVPE, showed Hall mobilities as high as 164000 and 103000 cm²/Vs at 4 K and 80 K, respectively. A maximum Hall mobility of 172000 cm²/Vs was measured at 20 K. Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations measured at 200 mK in magnetic fields up to 20 T indicated the total absence of parallel conduction. By illuminating the sample it was possible to populate the second electrical sub-band at a total carrier density n_s=4.4×10¹¹ cm^-2     

Where Is the Organization Looking in Order to Be Proactive about Safety? A Framework for Revealing whether It Is Mostly Looking Back,Also Looking Forward or Simply Looking Away

Despite the desire to utilize proactive safety metrics, research results indicate imbalances can arise between economic performance metrics and safety metrics. Imbalances can arise, first, because there are fewer proactive metrics available relative to the data an organization can compile to build reactive metrics. Second, there are a number of factors that lead organizations to discount proactive metrics when they conflict with shorter‐term and more definitive reactive metrics. This paper introduces the Q4‐Balance Framework to analyse economy‐safety trade‐offs. Plotting the sets of metrics used by an organization in the four‐quadrant visualization can be used to identify misalignments, overlap and false diversity. It results in a visualization of the set of metrics an organization uses and where these conflict or reinforce each other. The framework also provides a way to assess an organization's safety energy as a kind of analysis of an organization's capability to be proactive about safety.     

Planning for Waterway Renewal: Balancing Institutional Reproduction and Institutional Change

ABSTRACT

Modern waterway networks are ageing and need to be renewed, yet the institutional context in the waterway sector is averse to change because of path dependencies. Waterway renewal requires actors to navigate between institutional reproduction and change. Applying an innovative framework for analysing institutions in a case study of the Dutch national waterways, we mainly find instances of institutional reproduction, which turns waterway renewal into a technical and financial exercise. However, institutional change becomes increasingly evident through a new functional-relational path, suggesting that planning for waterway renewal also entails reconsidering novel waterway configurations and incorporating neighbouring spatial developments.