Miniaturized Flexible Electronic Systems with Wireless Power and Near‐Field Communication Capabilities

A class of thin, lightweight, flexible, near‐field communication (NFC) devices with ultraminiaturized format is introduced, and systematic investigations of the mechanics, radio frequency characteristics, and materials aspects associated with their optimized construction are presented. These systems allow advantages in mechanical strength, placement versatility, and minimized interfacial stresses compared to other NFC technologies and wearable electronics. Detailed experimental studies and theoretical modeling of the mechanical and electromagnetic properties of these systems establish understanding of the key design considerations. These concepts can apply to many other types of wireless communication systems including biosensors and electronic implants.     

Enhanced electromagnetic transmission through a slit surrounded by rectangular grooves

Electromagnetic transmission through a slit surrounded by rectangular grooves in a conducting plane is investigated. An electromagnetic boundary-value problem associated with a slit surrounded by rectangular grooves in a conducting plane is rigorously solved based on the Fourier transform, eigenfunction expansion and mode matching method. The transmission coefficient through the slit is represented in a series. Computation is performed to illustrate the effect of the groove geometry on the transmission behaviours.     

Secondary side post regulator for improving cross regulation and reducing standby power consumption

The quest for improved energy savings is driving research into power converter high-efficiency operation under extremely light-load conditions. The use of multiple output converters to satisfy circuit needs and cost requirements adds additional complication to the standby mode power-consumption problem. This is due to the difficulty of satisfying both good cross-regulation under various load conditions as well as high efficiency in the standby mode simultaneously; because topologies that exhibit a good cross-regulation performance, such as resonant converters, generally have a poor efficiency problem under extremely light-loads. A secondary side post regulator (SSPR) is proposed to reduce the standby power consumption and to improve the cross-regulation performance of single- controller multiple-output channel power converters. It is capable of reducing the power consumption of the power converter as well as the SSPR. The SSPR is analysed using its operational principles and small signal models. A 110?W experimental prototype was built to verify the standby power consumption and cross-regulation performance using the proposed SSPR.     

Implementation of a Wireless Multimedia DSP Chip for Mobile Applications

This paper presents the implementation of a wireless multimedia DSP chip for mobile applications. The implemented DSP chip supports communication instructions for Viterbi, timing synchronization, etc. as well as multimedia instructions. The DSP can handle variable length data and perform four MACs in a cycle. The proposed DSP employs parallel processing techniques, such as SIMD, vector processing, DSP schemes and adopts low power features for wireless applications. The implemented DSP chip includes test circuits and various peripherals, such as DMA, bus arbitration, timer, etc. This chip has been modeled by Verilog HDL and implemented using the 0.35 m HCB60 library. The total gate count excluding memory is about 170,000 gates and the clock frequency is 100 MHz.Junghoo Lee received the B.S. degree in electronic engineering from Ajou University, Suwon, Korea in 2002. He is currently working toward the Ph.D. degree with School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Ajou University. His main research interests include SOC design and application-specific DSP chip design.Myung H. Sunwoo received the B.S. degree in electronic engineering from the Sogang University in 1980, the M.S. degree in electrical and electronics from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology in 1982, and the Ph.D. degree in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Texas at Austin in 1990.He worked for Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) in Daejeon, Korea from 1982 to 1985 and Digital Signal Processor Operations, Motorola, Austin, TX from 1990 to 1992. Since 1992, he has been a Professor with the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Ajou University in Suwon, Korea. In 2000, he was a Visiting Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the University of California, Davis, CA. He is the Director of the National Research Laboratory sponsored by the Ministry of Science and Technology. His research interests include VLSI architectures, SOC design for multimedia and communications, and application-specific DSP architectures.Dr. Sunwoo has published more than 120 papers in international transactions/journals and conferences and also has 28 patents including five U.S. patents. He served as a Technical Program Chair of the IEEE Workshop on Signal Processing Systems (SIPS) in 2003 and a member of the technical program committee of various international conferences. He has received a number of research awards from the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy, Samsung Electronics, and professional foundations. He served as an Associate Editor for the IEEE Transactions on Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) Systems (2002–2003) and as a Guest Editor for the Journal of VLSI Signal Processing (Kluwer, 2004). Currently, He is a Senior Member of IEEE and a Chair of the IEEE CAS Society of the Seoul Chapter.     

Nanoshuttered OLEDs: Unveiled Invisible Auxiliary Electrode

In this study, organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs) with enhanced optical properties are fabricated by inserting a nanosized stripe auxiliary electrode layer (nSAEL) between the substrate and an indium tin oxide (ITO) layer. This design can avoid the shortcomings of conventional microsized layers while maintaining high optical uniformity due to the improved conductivity of the electrode. The primary advantage is that the nSAEL (submicrometer scale) is no longer visible to the naked eye. Moreover, the reflective shuttered (grating) structure of the nSAEL increases the forward‐directed light by the microcavity (MC) effect and minimizes the loss of light by the extracting the surface plasmon polariton (SPP) mode. In this study, the degree of the MC and SPP can be controlled with the parameters of the nSAEL by simply conjugating the conditions of laser interference lithography (LIL). Therefore, the current and power efficiencies of the device with an nSAEL with optimized parameters are 1.17 and 1.23 times higher than the reference device at 1000 cd/m², respectively, and at these parameters, the overall sheet resistance is reduced to less than half (48%). All of the processes are verified by comparing the computational simulation results and the experimental results obtained with the actual fabricated device.     

Designing Thin,Ultrastretchable Electronics with Stacked Circuits and Elastomeric Encapsulation Materials

Many recently developed soft, skin‐like electronics with high performance circuits and low modulus encapsulation materials can accommodate large bending, stretching, and twisting deformations. Their compliant mechanics also allows for intimate, nonintrusive integration to the curvilinear surfaces of soft biological tissues. By introducing a stacked circuit construct, the functional density of these systems can be greatly improved, yet their desirable mechanics may be compromised due to the increased overall thickness. To address this issue, the results presented here establish design guidelines for optimizing the deformable properties of stretchable electronics with stacked circuit layers. The effects of three contributing factors (i.e., the silicone interlayer, the composite encapsulation, and the deformable interconnects) on the stretchability of a multilayer system are explored in detail via combined experimental observation, finite element modeling, and theoretical analysis. Finally, an electronic module with optimized design is demonstrated. This highly deformable system can be repetitively folded, twisted, or stretched without observable influences to its electrical functionality. The ultrasoft, thin nature of the module makes it suitable for conformal biointegration.     

Topical Capsaicin in Poly(lactic-co-glycolic)acid (PLGA) Nanoparticles Decreases Acute Itch and Heat Pain

Background: Capsaicin, the hot pepper agent, produces burning followed by desensitization. To treat localized itch or pain with minimal burning, low capsaicin concentrations can be repeatedly applied. We hypothesized that alternatively controlled release of capsaicin from poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles desensitizes superficially terminating nociceptors, reducing burning. Methods: Capsaicin-loaded PLGA nanoparticles were prepared (single-emulsion solvent evaporation) and characterized (size, morphology, capsaicin loading, encapsulation efficiency, in vitro release profile). Capsaicin-PLGA nanoparticles were applied to murine skin and evaluated in healthy human participants (n = 21) for 4 days under blinded conditions, and itch and nociceptive sensations evoked by mechanical, heat stimuli and pruritogens cowhage, β-alanine, BAM8-22 and histamine were evaluated. Results: Nanoparticles (loading: 58 µg capsaicin/mg) released in vitro 23% capsaicin within the first hour and had complete release at 72 h. In mice, 24 h post-application Capsaicin-PLGA nanoparticles penetrated the dermis and led to decreased nociceptive behavioral responses to heat and mechanical stimulation (desensitization). Application in humans produced a weak to moderate burning, dissipating after 3 h. A loss of heat pain up to 2 weeks was observed. After capsaicin nanoparticles, itch and nociceptive sensations were reduced in response to pruritogens cowhage, β-alanine or BAM8-22, but were normal to histamine. Conclusions: Capsaicin nanoparticles could be useful in reducing pain and itch associated with pruritic diseases that are histamine-independent.     

基于液晶偏振开关与液晶屏的三维集成成像

本文提出一种利用液晶显示屏(LCD)和液晶(LC)偏振开关组成的三维集成成像系统，并给出实验演示结果，其目的是为了增强可视性，例如集成成像的视角和图像深度。为了增大视角，使用了液晶偏振开关控制的单透镜和正交偏振片。为了增大图像的深度，采用了双折射材料或带有偏振开关的偏振选择性反射镜。由于我们提出的所有方法都不使用机械结构，因此有助于实现一个实用的基于集成成像的3D显示系统。     

Photocurrent effect on the zero-Bias dynamic resistance of HgCdTe photodiode

A new physical model is presented for the illumination-dependence of the zero-bias resistance-area product (R₀A) of HgCdTe photodiode. The model is based on three independent mechanisms. They are the depletion region volume change with the applied bias, the diffusion distance change with the moving depletion region edge, and the minority carrier accumulation in the depletion region which affects the minority carrier diffusion. Analytic equations are derived for the photodiode current-voltage characteristics and R₀A products. The results of the model have been compared with experimental data obtained from several Hg_0.7Cd_0.3Te diodes with an identical diode structure having different absorbing amount of light. The model showed good agreement with the experimental data.