Broadly wavelength-tunable external cavity lasers with extremely low power variation over tuning range

Tunable external-cavity lasers with low power variation over a broad tuning range are demonstrated using asymmetric multiple quantum-wells with a wide and flat gain. For a 2.8-/spl mu/m-wide ridge waveguide laser of cavity length 380 /spl mu/m, when used in a grating external cavity and with an antireflection coating on one facet of laser diode chip, the power variation of less than -1 dB is obtained over a range of 80 nm. This extremely low power variation is a direct result of the spectrally flat gain.     

Research activities on next-generation mobile communications and services in Korea

In this article we present a perspective on next-generation mobile communications and services. As a preliminary research work on next-generation mobile communications, we exploit what next-generation mobile services will be (S. Ryu et al., May 2003). We define next-generation mobile services as a hierarchy of services consisting of three different service levels: the service areas, the service functionalities, and the service technologies. We derive these service levels by means of scenario-based analysis. Next we propose conceptual reference network architecture, focusing on the realization of the service technologies. We divide the network into four different parts: a user equipments and access part, a network service provisioning layer part, a network control layer part, and non-mobile network operator service pan, according to characteristics of information and service flows within a network. In this reference network architecture, service elements such as servers, processors, and gateways are placed in each network part to support the derived next-generation mobile services. Finally, we give a brief introduction of research and development activities for next-generation mobile communication systems and services in Korea.     

Natural quality two-band LPC coding of speech at 880 bit/s withframe interpolation

A novel frame interpolation technique for two-band linear predictive coding (LPC) vocoders is proposed for maintaining natural speech quality at bit rates below 1 kbit/s. Experimental results show that the speech quality of the proposed vocoder is quite natural at bit rates 880 bit/s and comparable to that of 4.8 kbit/s CELP     

An Architecture of Scalable ATM Switching System and Its Call Processing Capacity Estimation

In this paper, we define the general requirements of ATM switching systems such as scalability, distributed fashion, and modularity. Also we propose a practical implementation of a scalable ATM switching system whose capacity can be easily expanded. Firstly, the architecture of the system is discussed with an emphasis on system scalability, modularity of subsystems and the simple control network of the design requirements. Secondly, we suggest the three types of distributed call/connection control schemes that are suitable for our switching system. We also estimate their call processing capacity on the average and make a comparison of them under the various system architectures. Since our scalable switching system can be constructed to perform the call processing functions on the various levels of the system capacity, it has much adaptability at the various evolution phases or regions of the network environment.     

Design and Architecture of Low‐Latency High‐Speed Turbo Decoders

In this paper, we propose and present implementation results of a high‐speed turbo decoding algorithm. The latency caused by (de)interleaving and iterative decoding in a conventional maximum a posteriori turbo decoder can be dramatically reduced with the proposed design. The source of the latency reduction is from the combination of the radix‐4, center to top, parallel decoding, and early‐stop algorithms. This reduced latency enables the use of the turbo decoder as a forward error correction scheme in real‐time wireless communication services. The proposed scheme results in a slight degradation in bit error rate performance for large block sizes because the effective interleaver size in a radix‐4 implementation is reduced to half, relative to the conventional method. To prove the latency reduction, we implemented the proposed scheme on a field‐programmable gate array and compared its decoding speed with that of a conventional decoder. The results show an improvement of at least five fold for a single iteration of turbo decoding.     

High‐Performance Metal‐Substrate Power Module for Electrical Applications

This paper demonstrates the performance of a metal‐substrate power module with multiple fabricated chips for a high current electrical application, and evaluates the proposed module using a 1.5‐kW sinusoidal brushless direct current (BLDC) motor. Specifically, the power module has a hybrid structure employing a single‐layer heat‐sink extensible metal board (Al board). A fabricated motor driver IC and trench gate DMOSFET (TDMOSFET) are implemented on the Al board, and the proper heat‐sink size was designed under the operating conditions. The fabricated motor driver IC mainly operates as a speed controller under various load conditions, and as a multi‐phase gate driver using an N‐ch silicon MOSFET high‐side drive scheme. A fabricated power TDMOSFET is also included in the fabricated power module for three‐phase inverter operation. Using this proposed module, a BLDC motor is operated and evaluated under various pulse load tests, and our module is compared with a commercial MOSFET module in terms of the system efficiency and input current.     

The effects of bath composition on the morphologies of electroless nickel under-bump metallurgy on Al input/output pad

The electroless nickel plating on an aluminum input/output (I/O) pad was investigated. The aluminum pad was pretreated in a zincate solution prior to electroless nickel plating. Zinc particles on the aluminum pad gave a good adherent nickel layer. The adhesion and uniformity of zinc on the aluminum is the key factor in under-bump metallurgy (UBM). The electrode potential changes with and without zinc ions in the bath were measured to analyze the sequence of two competing reactions: zinc deposit and hydrogen evolution. The relationship between aluminum dissolution and the ratio of zinc and NaOH was investigated. The electroless nickel deposition rate was dependent on bath composition. The effects of complexing ligand and additive on the nickel deposit were analyzed. Electrode potential changes were measured with time to confirm nucleation and grain growth. Adhesion of the UBM was related to zinc-particle dissolution and nickel nucleation. The uniform nickel UBM was fabricated on a real Al I/O pad.     

The Design of Genetically Optimized Self-Organizing Neural Networks with Polynomial and Fuzzy Polynomial Neurons

In this study, we introduce and investigate a class of neural architectures of self-organizing neural networks (SONNs) that is based on a genetically optimized multilayer perceptron with polynomial neurons (PNs) or fuzzy polynomial neurons (FPNs), develop a comprehensive design methodology involving mechanisms of genetic optimization, and carry out a series of numeric experiments. We distinguish between two kinds of SONN architectures: (a) PN-based and (b) FPN-based SONNs. The augmented genetically optimized SONN (gSONN) results in a structurally optimized structure and comes with a higher level of flexibility in comparison to the one encountered in the conventional SONN. The genetic algorithm (GA)-based design procedure being applied at each layer of SONN leads to the selection of preferred nodes (PNs or FPNs) with specific local characteristics (such as the number of input variables, the order of the polynomial, and a collection of the specific subset of input variables) available within the network.     

A high-yield fabrication process for silicon neural probes

There is a great need for silicon microelectrodes that can simultaneously monitor the activity of many neurons in the brain. However, one of the existing processes for fabricating silicon microelectrodes-reactive-ion etching in combination with anisotropic KOH etching-breaks down at the wet-etching step for device release. Here we describe a modified wet-etching sidewall-protection technique for the high-yield fabrication of well-defined silicon probe structures, using a Teflon shield and low-pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) silicon nitride. In the proposed method, a micro-tab holds each individual probe to the central scaffold, allowing uniform anisotropic KOH etching. Using this approach, we obtained a well-defined probe structure without device loss during the wet-etching process. This simple method yielded more accurate fabrication and an improved mechanical profile.