Low-threshold, high-power, 1.3-μm wavelength, InGaAsP-InPetched-facet folded-cavity surface-emitting lasers

A 1.3-μm wavelength, InGaAsP-InP folded-cavity, surface-emitting laser with CH₄-H₂ reactive ion-etched vertical and 45° angled facets was demonstrated for the first time. Continuous-wave threshold currents of 32 mA have been achieved, with >15 mW CW power for the surface-emitted light. These surface-emitting lasers with two dry-etched facets are suitable for wafer-level testing and for monolithic integration with other InP-based photonic devices     

New zero voltage switching DC converter with flying capacitors

A new soft switching converter is presented for medium power applications. Two full-bridge converters are connected in series at high voltage side in order to limit the voltage stress of power switches at V_in/2. Therefore, power metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) with 600 V voltage rating can be adopted for 1200 V input voltage applications. In order to balance two input split capacitor voltages in every switching cycle, two flying capacitors are connected on the AC side of two full-bridge converters. Phase-shift pulse-width modulation (PS-PWM) is adopted to regulate the output voltage. Based on the resonant behaviour by the output capacitance of MOSFETs and the resonant inductance, active MOSFETs can be turned on under zero voltage switching (ZVS) during the transition interval. Thus, the switching losses of power MOSFETs are reduced. Two full-bridge converters are used in the proposed circuit to share load current and reduce the current stress of passive and active components. The circuit analysis and design example of the prototype circuit are provided in detail and the performance of the proposed converter is verified by the experiments.     

A Unified Framework of the Cloud Computing Service Model

After a comprehensive literature review and analysis, a unified cloud computing framework is proposed, which comprises MapReduce, a vertual machine, Hadoop distributed file system (HDFS), Hbase, Hadoop, and virtualization. This study also compares Microsoft, Trend Micro, and the proposed unified cloud computing architecture to show that the proposed unified framework of the cloud computing service model is comprehensive and appropriate for the current complexities of businesses. The findings of this study can contribute to the knowledge for academics and practitioners to understand, assess, and analyze a cloud computing service application.     

Ohmic contacts to n-type GaSb and n-type GalnAsSb

An investigation with the objective of improving n-type ohmic contacts to GaSb-based devices is described. This study involves a series of n-GaInAsSb and n-GaSb samples with varying doping, grown on semi-insulating (SI) GaAs substrates. These samples were fabricated into mesa-etched, transfer-length method (TLM) structures, and the specific-contact resistivity and sheet resistance of these layers as a function of majority electron concentration were measured. Extremely low specific-contact resistivities of about 2 × 10⁻⁶ Ω-cm² and sheet resistances of about 4 Ω/▭ are found for n-type GaInAsSb doped at about 3 × 10¹⁸ cm⁻³.     

Effect of quadratic radial variation of phase on single slit diffraction of Laguerre–Gauss vortex beams

Effect of quadratic radial phase variation in the plane of the aperture on Fraunhofer diffraction of Laguerre–Gauss vortex beams by a slit is studied experimentally. For slit positions near the incident beam waist, its effect is to shear the diffraction pattern relative to that at the waist. The magnitude and sense of shear depend on the topological charge and slit location relative to the incident beam waist. For slit positions far from the waist, the diffraction pattern evolves to be significantly different and is dominated by two strong peaks. A closed form analytical expression for the diffraction pattern is presented, which reproduces experimental results quite well for all slit positions.     

Aerothermoelastic analysis of composite laminated plates

The flutter behavior of a thermally buckled composite laminated plate is investigated in the frequency and time domains using the finite element method. Von Karman large deformation assumptions and quasi-steady aerodynamic theory are employed for the analysis. The effects of temperature gradient, panel length-to-width ratio, fiber orientation, and stacking sequence on aerothermoelastic behavior of the plate are studied in detail. The flutter boundary, buckling boundary, time history response, and phase plane plots of cross-ply and angle-ply laminates are presented. The numerical results show that temperature gradient induces thermal moments and increases the overall stiffness of the plate, and thus may increase the flutter boundary significantly. When the buckle pattern of the plate changes, the eigenvalues of the natural modes are changed suddenly and the sequence of the natural modes may be altered. Therefore, the change in the buckle pattern postpones the coalescence and the flutter boundary may increase. The change in the coalescence pair may also postpone the coalescence and increase the flutter boundary.     

Analysis of volume change effects in a fluidized bed catalytic reactor

A mathematical model based on the concept of an improved bubble assemblage model is developed for calculating the conversion of a reaction system involving a volume change in fluidized beds. The influence of volume change on the hydrodynamic behavior of gas in the bed, such as bubble size variation, superficial gas velocity change, and volume fraction occupied by each phase, is also investigated. It is found that increasing stoichiometric coefficient values results in larger bubble size, higher superficial gas velocities, higher crossflow rate between emulsion phase and bubble phase, and greater volume fraction of bubble phase, but smaller volume fraction occupied by the emulsion phase as well as lower conversions.     

Finite Element Limit Analysis of Passive Earth Resistance in Cohesionless Soils

This note examines the classic passive earth resistance of cohesionless soil by using two newly developed numerical procedures based on finite element formulations of the bound theorems of limit analysis and non-linear programming techniques. Solutions using upper and lower bounds are presented to complement the previous studies of this problem. The parameters studied are soil-wall interface friction, wall inclination, backfill surface configuration and the wall's weight.     

Flutter of Thermally Buckled Composite Sandwich Plates

A high precision high order triangular plate element is developed for the linear flutter analysis of thermally buckled composite sandwich plates. Due to uneven thermal expansion in the two local material directions, the buckling mode of the plate may be shifted from one pattern to another for certain fiber orientation or plate aspect ratio as the aerodynamic pressure is present. This buckle pattern change alters the frequencies and modes of the plate and that in turn changes the flutter coalescent modes. Numerical results show that temperature has a destabilizing effect on the flutter boundary but the aerodynamic pressure has a stabilizing effect on the buckling boundary.     

Surface and subsurface damages and magnetic recording pattern degradation induced by indentation and scratching

Magnetic recording pattern degradation due to head–disk impact and scratching are simulated by static indentation and scratch testing, respectively, on a pre-recorded thin film magnetic recording disk. Different magnitude of controlled stresses were used to induce stress and physical damage to the magnetic recording disk resulting in erasure and distortion of the magnetic recording pattern. Both nanoindentation and scratching resulted in the elastic–plastic deformation of the multilayer coating of the magnetic recording disk but in different relative magnitude and types of in-plane stresses (which are effective in causing magnetization changes). For residual indentation and scratch depths of the order of the magnetic disk coating thickness, magnetization changes in the recording pattern were observed even though the protective carbon overcoat was not damaged. Large magnetic pattern distortion and erasure results where cracks and pileups, and delamination and buckling damages were observed for deeper indentation marks and scratch grooves, respectively.