Distributed resource allocation schemes

In this article, we discuss distributed resource allocation schemes in which each transmitter determines its allocation autonomously, based on the exchange of interference prices. These schemes have been primarily motivated by the common model for spectrum sharing in which a user or service provider may transmit in a designated band provided that they abide by certain rules (e.g., a standard such as 802.11). An attractive property of these schemes is that they are scalable, i.e., the information exchange and overhead can be adapted according to the size of the network.     

Rheology of fluids measured by correlation force spectroscopy

We describe a method, correlation force spectrometry (CFS), which characterizes fluids through measurement of the correlations between the thermally stimulated vibrations of two closely spaced micrometer-scale cantilevers in fluid. We discuss a major application: measurement of the rheological properties of fluids at high frequency and high spatial resolution. Use of CFS as a rheometer is validated by comparison between experimental data and finite element modeling of the deterministic ring-down of cantilevers using the known viscosity of fluids. The data can also be accurately fitted using a harmonic oscillator model, which can be used for rapid rheometric measurements after calibration. The method is non-invasive, uses a very small amount of fluid, and has no actively moving parts. It can also be used to analyze the rheology of complex fluids. We use CFS to show that (non-Newtonian) aqueous polyethylene oxide solution can be modeled approximately by incorporating an elastic spring between the cantilevers.     

Motor,Visual and Emotional Deficits in Mice after Closed-Head Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Are Alleviated by the Novel CB2 Inverse Agonist SMM-189

We have developed a focal blast model of closed-head mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) in mice. As true for individuals that have experienced mild TBI, mice subjected to 50–60 psi blast show motor, visual and emotional deficits, diffuse axonal injury and microglial activation, but no overt neuron loss. Because microglial activation can worsen brain damage after a concussive event and because microglia can be modulated by their cannabinoid type 2 receptors (CB2), we evaluated the effectiveness of the novel CB2 receptor inverse agonist SMM-189 in altering microglial activation and mitigating deficits after mild TBI. In vitro analysis indicated that SMM-189 converted human microglia from the pro-inflammatory M1 phenotype to the pro-healing M2 phenotype. Studies in mice showed that daily administration of SMM-189 for two weeks beginning shortly after blast greatly reduced the motor, visual, and emotional deficits otherwise evident after 50–60 psi blasts, and prevented brain injury that may contribute to these deficits. Our results suggest that treatment with the CB2 inverse agonist SMM-189 after a mild TBI event can reduce its adverse consequences by beneficially modulating microglial activation. These findings recommend further evaluation of CB2 inverse agonists as a novel therapeutic approach for treating mild TBI.     

Adaptive reduced-rank interference suppression based on themultistage Wiener filter

A class of adaptive reduced-rank interference suppression algorithms is presented based on the multistage Wiener filter (MSWF). The performance is examined in the context of direct-sequence (DS) code division multiple access (CDMA). Unlike the principal components method for reduced-rank filtering, the algorithms presented can achieve near full-rank performance with a filter rank much less than the dimension of the signal subspace. We present batch and recursive algorithms for estimating the filter parameters, which do not require an eigen-decomposition. The algorithm performance in a heavily loaded DS-CDMA system is characterized via computer simulation. The results show that the reduced-rank algorithms require significantly fewer training samples than other reduced- and full-rank algorithms     

Signature sequence adaptation for DS-CDMA with multipath

Joint transmitter-receiver adaptation is studied for the reverse link of a direct sequence-code division multiple access system with short signature sequences. The signature for a particular user is computed at the receiver and transmitted back to the transmitter via a feedback channel. A reduced-rank transmitter adaptation scheme is presented in which the signature is constrained to lie in a lower dimensional subspace. This allows a tradeoff between system performance and the number of estimated parameters. Analytical and simulation results show that adaptation of relatively few transmitter coefficients can lead to significant performance improvements. Adaptive algorithms are derived for estimating the transmitter coefficients in the presence of multipath. We consider both collective optimization, in which the users adapt together to improve a global system performance criterion, and individual optimization, in which the signature for a particular user is adapted to optimize individual performance. Numerical results are presented, which show that both individual and collective joint transmitter-receiver adaptation can effectively preequalize the channel and avoid interference at high loads     

Asymptotic analysis of LMMSE multiuser receivers for multi-signature multicarrier CDMA in Rayleigh fading

This paper considers a multicarrier (MC) code-division multiple-access system where each user employs multiple signatures. The receiver is linear and minimizes the mean square error of the data estimate. Both multiple-user and single-user systems are considered, as well as single and multiple signatures per user. In each case, an asymptotic analysis is used to derive the output signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) as a function of the system loading, the noise power, and the fading properties of the channel. Asymptotic in this case means that the number of independent subcarriers and number of signatures per user each tends to infinity with fixed ratio. The associated bit-error rate (BER) is evaluated for binary phase-shift keying symbols. Simulations show that the asymptotic SINRs and BERs derived in each case are accurate for realistic finite systems.     

Forward-link performance of satellite CDMA with linear interference suppression and one-step power control

Wideband direct-sequence (DS)-code-division multiple-access (CDMA) is a strong candidate for both terrestrial and satellite components of UMTS. The forward-link capacity of a satellite DS-CDMA system with a conventional matched filter (MF) receiver is limited by interference from adjacent beams and possibly overlapping beams from multiple satellites. In this paper, we study the performance of the linear minimum mean squared error (MMSE) receiver for the satellite forward link. System constraints are long propagation delay, which prevents accurate closed-loop power control, and low on-board power consumption, which implies a low received bit energy to noise density ratio at the mobile receiver. We consider a "one-step" power adjustment algorithm which attempts to compensate for random shadowing and path loss, and compare the associated performance of the MMSE and MF receivers. Dual-satellite diversity is also considered. The effect of code rate on performance is studied through the use of punctured convolutional codes and the evaluation of random coding bounds. Our results indicate that linear MMSE interference suppression can improve the quality of service and increase system capacity significantly.