Power-based control of physical systems

It is well known that energy-balancing control is stymied by the presence of pervasive dissipation. To overcome this problem in electrical circuits, the alternative paradigm of power shaping was introduced in Ortega, Jeltsema, and Scherpen (2003) —where, as suggested by its name, stabilization is achieved shaping a function akin to the power instead of the energy function. In this paper we extend this technique to general nonlinear systems. The method relies on the solution of a PDE, which identifies the open-loop storage function. We show through some physical examples, that the power-shaping methodology yields storage functions which have units of power. To motivate the application of this control technique we illustrate the procedure with two case studies: a tunnel diode circuit and a two-tanks system.     

Reliability-based bridge assessment using risk-ranking decision analysis

Information about present and anticipated bridge reliabilities can be used in conjunction with decision models to provide a rational decision-making tool for the assessment of bridges and other structural systems. The present paper presents a broad overview of reliability-based assessment methods and will then focus on decision-making applications using updated time-dependent estimates of bridge reliabilities considering a risk-ranking decision analysis. A practical application of reliability-based safety assessment is illustrated herein which relates the effects of bridge age, current and future (increasing) traffic volume and loads, and deterioration on the reliability and safety of ageing RC bridges.     

Comparison of contact resistance between accumulation-mode and inversion-mode multigate FETs

The performances of accumulation-mode and inversion-mode multigate FETs are compared. The influence of gate underlap on the electrical properties is analyzed. Both simulation results and experimental data show that in a device with gate underlap, accumulation-mode devices have a higher current drive, lower source and drain resistance and less process variability than inversion-mode FETs.     

Structural Evolution Following Spinodal Decomposition of the Pseudoternary Compound (Pb0.3Sn0.1Ge0.6)Te

Pseudoternary (Ge,Sn,Pb)Te compounds display favorable thermoelectric properties. Spinodal decomposition in the quasiternary (Ge,Sn,Pb)Te system is at the origin of a wide solubility gap at low Sn concentrations. The structural evolution of the spinodal decomposition was investigated as a function of aging time at 500°C, using x-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. The evolution of the structure at 500°C consists initially of a short diffusion-controlled demixing stage into Pb- and Ge-rich coherent areas, with compositions corresponding to the inflection points of the free-energy curve. The Pb-rich areas adopt configurations associated with the directions of the soft elastic moduli of the cubic compound. Both the Pb- and Ge-rich areas are supersaturated and undergo in a second stage a nucleation and growth process and give rise to a biphased structure with equilibrium compositions corresponding to the boundaries of the miscibility gap. The resulting Pb-rich areas display a relatively stable microstructure suggesting the presence of long-range interactions between the Pb-rich precipitates in the Ge-rich matrix.     

Energy Evaluation for Ramberg–Osgood Hysteretic Model

Response of structures to static and dynamic loads may be assessed in terms of energy. The energy evaluation depends on hysteretic models used to describe inelastic behavior of structures and their elements. One of the hysteretic models often employed in structural analysis is the Ramberg–Osgood model. In the paper a physically motivated model, which leads to the Ramberg–Osgood force–displacement relationship under monotonic loading and exhibits Masing type of behavior for unloading/reloading, is described. Based on the model formulas to calculate recoverable elastic strain energy and irrecoverable hysteretic energy for systems/elements under monotonic loading are derived. It is also shown how recoverable elastic strain energy and irrecoverable hysteretic energy can be evaluated at any point of unloading/reloading curves for a system/element of Masing type. The application of the derived formulas is illustrated by evaluating the energy of a single-degree-of-freedom system subjected to impulse and seismic loading.     

Photolithographic patterning of organic photodetectors with a non-fluorinated photoresist system

We report on the fabrication of organic photodetectors (OPD) based on isolated islands of P3HT:PCBM. Pattern transfer to the active material was done with photolithography based on non-fluorinated solvents and the excessive organic semiconductor was removed with oxygen plasma reactive ion etching. The photoresist system used was found to be benign to the P3HT:PCBM layer as confirmed by absorption, thickness and roughness measurements. Current–voltage characteristics and external quantum efficiency (EQE) remained unchanged after the patterning process. It was demonstrated that it is possible to photolithographically pattern isolated islands with 200 μm edge length with the same dark current density (<10⁻⁵ A/cm² at −2 V bias voltage) and photocurrent density (>5 × 10⁻³ A/cm² at −2 V). Furthermore, concerning the solar cell performance, the patterned, small-area devices showed power conversion efficiency of 2.1% and fill-factor of 60%. Dark current was observed to depend on the size of the remaining semiconductor island, which was demonstrated on OPDs with diameter of 50 μm. The presented results show the feasibility of fabrication of isolated devices based on organic semiconductors patterned with non-fluorinated photolithography.     

Intracellular imaging of nanoparticles: Is it an elemental mistake to believe what you see?

In order to understand how nanoparticles (NPs <100 nm) interact with cellular systems, potentially causing adverse effects, it is important to be able to detect and localize them within cells. Due to the small size of NPs, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is an appropriate technique to use for visualizing NPs inside cells, since light microscopy fails to resolve them at a single particle level. However, the presence of other cellular and non-cellular nano-sized structures in TEM cell samples, which may resemble NPs in size, morphology and electron density, can obstruct the precise intracellular identification of NPs. Therefore, elemental analysis is recommended to confirm the presence of NPs inside the cell. The present study highlights the necessity to perform elemental analysis, specifically energy filtering TEM, to confirm intracellular NP localization using the example of quantum dots (QDs). Recently, QDs have gained increased attention due to their fluorescent characteristics, and possible applications for biomedical imaging have been suggested. Nevertheless, potential adverse effects cannot be excluded and some studies point to a correlation between intracellular particle localization and toxic effects. J774.A1 murine macrophage-like cells were exposed to NH₂ polyethylene (PEG) QDs and elemental co-localization analysis of two elements present in the QDs (sulfur and cadmium) was performed on putative intracellular QDs with electron spectroscopic imaging (ESI). Both elements were shown on a single particle level and QDs were confirmed to be located inside intracellular vesicles. Nevertheless, ESI analysis showed that not all nano-sized structures, initially identified as QDs, were confirmed. This observation emphasizes the necessity to perform elemental analysis when investigating intracellular NP localization using TEM.     

Inelastic displacement ratios for SDOF structures subjected to repeated earthquakes

Knowledge of the inelastic displacement ratio, i.e. the ratio of the maximum inelastic to the maximum elastic displacement of an SDOF system, allows the computation of its maximum inelastic displacement directly from the corresponding elastic one. This paper presents a simple and effective method for the inelastic displacement ratio estimation of a structure under repeated or multiple earthquakes. Extensive parametric studies are conducted to obtain expressions for this ratio, in terms of the period of vibration, the viscous damping ratio, the strain-hardening ratio, the force reduction factor and the soil class. It is found that the repeated earthquakes phenomenon has a significant effect on the inelastic displacement ratio and hence on the maximum inelastic displacement of SDOF systems.