PLL design technique by a loop-trajectory analysis taking decision-circuit phase margin into account for over-10-Gb/s clock and data recovery circuits

A design technique for an over-10-Gb/s clock and data recovery (CDR) IC provides good jitter tolerance and low jitter. To design the CDR using a PLL that includes a decision circuit with a certain phase margin affecting the pull-in performance, we derived a simple expression for the pull-in range of the PLL, which we call the "limited pull-in range," and used it for the pull-in performance evaluation. The method allows us to quickly and easily compare the pull-in performance of a conventional PLL with a full-rate clock and a PLL with a half-rate clock, and we verified that the half-rate PLL is advantageous because of its wider frequency range. For verification of the method, we fabricated a half-rate CDR with a 1:16 DEMUX IC using commercially available Si bipolar technology with f/sub T/=43 GHz. The half-rate clock technique with a linear phase detector, which is adopted to avoid using the binary phase detector often used for half-rate CDR ICs, achieves good jitter characteristics. The CDR IC operates reliably up to over 15 Gb/s and achieves jitter tolerance with wide margins that surpasses the ITU-T specifications. Furthermore, the measured jitter generation is less than 0.4 ps rms, which is much lower than the ITU-T specification. In addition, the CDR IC can extract a precise clock signal under harsh conditions, such as when the bit error rate of input data is around 2/spl times/10/sup -2/ due to a low-power optical input of -24 dBm.     

Effect of dispersant on paste rheology in preparation of porous alumina with oriented pores by extrusion method

The effect of additives on paste rheology was investigated for preparation of porous ceramics with unidirectionally aligned cylindrical pores. Ammonium poly-carboxylic acid (APA) used as a dispersant and it was adsorbed on alumina powder surface. The adsorption isotherm of APA was fitted by Langmuir equation. The saturated monolayer adsorption was 5.9 mg/g. The apparent viscosity became a minimum at 0.8 mass % of APA corresponding to 71.2 mPa⋅s. This APA amount of 5.6 mg/g, is in good agreement with the observed APA amount. Since the nylon 66 fibers (0–35 vol. %) mixed with the alumina powder have a strong interaction with each other, they became twisted and agglomerated. This agglomeration increased with increasing fiber content but decreased by adding oleic acid. The pastes with added oleic acid were capable of being extruded at higher pressure. The obtained porous alumina ceramics showed highly oriented cylindrical pores parallel to the extrusion direction. The pore orientation was higher in the oleic acid added pastes than those without oleic acid. The added nylon 66 fibers are mostly converted to pores while maintaining the original shape after sintering. The pore size distribution of the obtained porous ceramics measured by mercury porosimetry method showed a peak at about 4 μm which is apparently smaller than that observed in the SEM photographs and the obtained result is considered to be corresponding to the necks formed by fiber contacts.     

Loop-parameter optimization of a PLL for a low-jitter 2.5-Gb/sone-chip optical receiver IC with 1: 8 DEMUX

A loop parameter optimization method for a phase-locked loop (PLL) used in wide area networks (WANs) is proposed as a technique for achieving good jitter characteristics. It is shown that the jitter characteristics of the PLL, especially jitter transfer and jitter generation, depend strongly on the key parameter ζω_n (ζ is a damping factor and ω_n is the natural angular frequency of the PLL), and that the optimization focusing on the ω_n dependence of the jitter characteristics make it possible to comprehensively determine loop parameters and loop filter constants for a PLL that will fully comply with ITU-T jitter specifications. Using the optimization method with the low-jitter circuit design technique, a low-jitter and low-power 2.5-Gb/s optical receiver IC integrated with a limiting amplifier, clock and data recovery (CDR), and demultiplexer (DEMUX) is fabricated using 0.5-μm Si bipolar technology (f_T = 40 GHz). The jitter characteristics of the IC meet all three types of jitter specifications given in ITU-T recommendation G.783. In particular, the measured jitter generation is 3.2 ps rms, which is lower than that of an IC integrated with only a CDR in our previous work. In addition, the pull-in range of the PLL is 50 MHz and the power consumption of the IC is only 0.68 W (limiting amplifier: 0.2 W, CDR (PLL): 0.3 W, DEMUX: 0.18 W) at a supply voltage of -3.3 V and only 0.35 W at a supply voltage of -2.5 V (without output buffers)     

Control of microstructure and disintegration properties of silica granules from PVA slurries by spray drying

The microstructure of spray-dried model granules, comprising silica microspheres and poly (vinylalcohol), was observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) with an ultramicrotome technique. Disintegration of granules was characterized by a shear method for granular beds, and by a compression test for single granules. The internal structure changed significantly with the pH of the slurry from which the granules were spray-dried. Granules from pH 7 slurry showed the smallest apparent density, and were disintegrated under the smallest applied load. By analysing the relationship between microstructure, apparent density and flow behaviour of the slurries, it was possible to obtain a guideline for preparation of appropriate granules with controlled microstructure and strength.     

On the unstable propagation of a phase transition in a solid

To explore a possible mechanism of deep earthquakes, this paper analyzes the unstable propagation of a stress-induced phase transition which is initiated in a homogeneous stress field. This Stephen problem is formulated as an initial-value problem for the phase boundary, and the driving force of the boundary is computed by using the solution of the boundary-value problem for a partially transformed material. The propagation of the phase transition under uniform pressure is numerically simulated. It is shown that (1) under lower pressure, the transition is terminated at a certain size, but it can propagate unstably when an initially transformed region is sufficiently large; and (2) when the pressure attains a critical value, the propagation becomes unstable, and goes in a particular direction depending on the initial shape. These results confirm the possibility of the unstable propagation of phase transition, and provide a theoretical basis for the hypothesis that the phase transition of a mantle material can trigger a deep earthquake.     

Acoustic damping characterization and microstructure evolution during high-temperature creep of an austenitic stainless steel

We studied the microstructure evolution of an austenitic stainless steel, Type 316L, subjected to tensile creep at 973 K through the monitoring of shear-wave attenuation and velocity using electromagnetic acoustic resonance (EMAR). Contactless transduction based on the Lorentz force mechanism is the key to establishing a monitor for microstructural change in the bulk of metals with high sensitivity. In the short interval, 60 to 70 pct of the creep life, attenuation experiences a peak, independent of the applied stress. A drastic change in dislocation mobility and rearrangement interrupted this novel phenomenon, as is supported by observations using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and a transmission electron microscope (TEM). The EMAR exhibited the potential for the assessment of damage advance and the prediction of the remaining creep life of metals.     

Fabrication of nanograined silicon by high-pressure torsion

This paper describes fabrication of Si nanograins through allotropic phase transformation by concurrent application of high pressure and intense straining using high-pressure torsion (HPT). Single-crystalline Si(100) wafers were processed by HPT under a pressure of 24 GPa at room temperature. X-ray diffraction and Raman analysis revealed that the HPT-processed samples were composed of metastable Si-III and Si-XII phases and amorphous phases in addition to the original diamond-cubic Si-I phase. It was found that nanograins formed because the Si-I diamond phase had transformed to high-pressure phases (Si-II, Si-XI, and Si-V) having metallic nature, and it then became easier to generate a high density of dislocations to form grain boundaries. The high-pressure phases were further transformed to the Si-XII and Si-III phases via the Si-II phase upon unloading and they existed as metastable phases at ambient pressure. Subsequent annealing at 873 K gave rise to reverse transformation to Si-I but with nanograin sizes. Although no appreciable photoluminescence (PL) peak was observed from the HPT-processed sample, a broad PL peak centered around 600 nm was detected from the annealed sample due to quantum confinement in the Si-I nanograins.