Flexible hybrid WDM/TDM PON architectures using wavelength selective switches

For building an optical access network, we propose some new hybrid WDM/TDM passive optical network (PON) architectures that use wavelength selective switches (WSSs) at the remote node to improve flexibility, data security and power budget. Through simulations we demonstrate that the switching capabilities of a WSS can provide additional gains in terms of wavelength usage by a better statistical multiplexing. Several WSS-based hybrid WDM/TDM PON variants are proposed and assessed. These architectures are also compared with the more commonly used hybrid WDM/TDM PONs consisting of power splitters and/or arrayed wavelength gratings (AWGs), in terms of cost and power budget.     

Interfacial Engineering of Bifunctional Niobium (V)-Based Heterostructure Nanosheet Toward High Efficiency Lean-Electrolyte Lithium–Sulfur Full Batteries

High-efficiency lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries depend on an advanced electrode structure that can attain high sulfur utilization at lean-electrolyte conditions and minimum amount of lithium. Herein, a twinborn holey Nb₄N₅–Nb₂O₅ heterostructure is designed as a dual-functional host for both redox–kinetics–accelerated sulfur cathode and dendrite-inhibited lithium anode simultaneously for long-cycling and lean-electrolyte Li–S full batteries. Benefiting from the accelerative polysulfides anchoring–diffusion–converting efficiency of Nb₄N₅–Nb₂O₅, polysulfide-shutting is significantly alleviated. Meanwhile, the lithiophilic nature of holey Nb₄N₅–Nb₂O₅ is applied as an ion-redistributor for homogeneous Li-ion deposition. Taking advantage of these merits, the Li–S full batteries present excellent electrochemical properties, including a minimum capacity decay rate of 0.025% per cycle, and a high areal capacity of 5.0 mAh cm⁻² at sulfur loading of 6.9 mg cm⁻², corresponding to negative to positive capacity ratio of 2.4:1 and electrolyte to sulfur ratio of 5.1 µL mg⁻¹. Therefore, this work paves a new avenue for boosting high-performances Li–S batteries toward practical applications.     

Channel Assignment Strategies for Multiradio Wireless Mesh Networks: Issues and Solutions

Next-generation wireless mobile communications will be driven by converged networks that integrate disparate technologies and services. The wireless mesh network is envisaged to be one of the key components in the converged networks of the future, providing flexible high- bandwidth wireless backhaul over large geographical areas. While single radio mesh nodes operating on a single channel suffer from capacity constraints, equipping mesh routers with multiple radios using multiple nonoverlap- ping channels can significantly alleviate the capacity problem and increase the aggregate bandwidth available to the network. However, the assignment of channels to the radio interfaces poses significant challenges. The goal of channel assignment algorithms in multiradio mesh networks is to minimize interference while improving the aggregate network capacity and maintaining the connectivity of the network. In this article we examine the unique constraints of channel assignment in wireless mesh networks and identify the key factors governing assignment schemes, with particular reference to interference, traffic patterns, and multipath connectivity. After presenting a taxonomy of existing channel assignment algorithms for WMNs, we describe a new channel assignment scheme called MesTiC, which incorporates the mesh traffic pattern together with connectivity issues in order to minimize interference in multi- radio mesh networks.     

Floating Point CGRA based Ultra-Low Power DSP Accelerator

Journal of Signal Processing Systems - Coarse Grained Reconfigurable Arrays (CGRAs) are emerging as energy efficient accelerators providing a high grade of flexibility in both academia and...     

联邦学习在移动通信网络智能化的应用

为解决移动通信网络智能化中因用户隐私保护、数据孤岛等因素导致数据无法集中训练等问题,网络可融入联邦学习技术,构建高效的分布式可信网络智能化架构。概述了联邦学习研究现状以及标准现状,介绍了基于联邦学习的网络智能化架构,并基于该架构验证了客户体验管理应用案例,为移动通信网络与联邦学习的融合提供了参考和借鉴,进一步推动了联邦学习技术在网络智能化的应用。     

Assessment of organizational reliability capability

A reliability capability assessment process can assist OEMs and system integrators in assessing prospective suppliers for their ability to design and manufacture reliable products before they are delivered for use, and on an ongoing basis, help a company in identifying shortcomings in its reliability program, which can be rectified by subsequent improvement actions. The assessment can also help to establish reliability management practices for use by designers, suppliers, customers, and independent authorities. The assessment method may be used to evaluate the reliability capability of all types of electronics-related industries that perform activities influencing the reliability of a product. It can produce increased customer satisfaction, provide competitive opportunities, and shorten the product development cycle. In summary, a reliability capability assessment can be used for: 1) specifying or planning reliability practices if product development is implemented internally; 2) evaluating reliability practices to determine the extent to which a supplier is capable of providing a product that meets the reliability requirements/needs; and 3) improving reliability practices if the current reliability practices have been evaluated and improvement is desired or required.     

Smart Skin-Adhesive Patches: From Design to Biomedical Applications

With the advancement of medical and digital technologies, smart skin adhesive patches have emerged as a key player for complex medical purposes. In particular, skin adhesive patches with integrated electronics have created an excellent platform for monitoring health conditions and intelligent medication. However, the efficient design of the adhesive patches is still challenging as it requires a strong combination of network structure, adhesion, physical properties, and biocompatibility. To design an assimilated device, one must have a deep knowledge of various skin adhesive patches. This article provides a comprehensive review of the recent advances in skin-adhesive patches, including hydrogel-based adhesive patches, transdermal patches, and electronic skin (E-skin) patches, for various biomedical applications such as wound healing, drug delivery, biosensing, and health monitoring. Furthermore, the key challenges, implementable strategies, and future designs that can potentially provide researchers in designing innovative multipurpose smart skin patches are discussed. These advanced approaches are promising for managing the health and fitness of patients who require regular medical care.     

Routing Correlated Data in Wireless Sensor Networks: A Survey

Sensory data gathered from sensor nodes in physical proximity tend to exhibit strong correlation. To minimize such redundancy and hence curtail the load in wireless sensor networks with a goal to conserve energy, effective in-network fusion schemes have been extensively proposed in the literature. To this end, routing schemes supporting data fusion are extremely important as they dictate where and when sensory data streams shall intersect with each other and thus fusion will be performed. In this article we briefly articulate this problem and classify recently proposed routing schemes supporting data fusion in wireless sensor networks into three categories: routing-driven, coding-driven, and fusion-driven. We also give an overview of various algorithms in each category by summarizing their design approaches, benefits, and drawbacks.     

A model of front-illuminated n+-p-p+high-efficiency silicon solar cell

A realistic model of a front-illuminated n⁺-p-p⁺ silicon solar cell is developed by solving the current continuity equations for minority carriers in the quasi-neutral regions in steady state, assuming the light in the cell is trapped as a result of multiple reflections at the front and the back of the cell. This model is used to study the effects of the front emitter thickness and doping level and the light trapping on the J-V characteristic and thereby on the open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current density, curve factor, and the efficiency of the cell. A textured cell with an emitter thickness in the range of 0.3-1.0 μm with its doping ≈5×10¹⁸ cm^-3 and the recombination velocities of minority carriers as large as 200 cm/s at the n⁺ front surface and 10 cm/s at the back of the p base can exhibit an efficiency in excess of 26% (under AM 1.5 sunlight of 100 mW/cm² intensity) at 25°C if the light reflection losses at the front surface can be made small     

A time optimal wavelength rerouting algorithm for dynamic trafficin WDM networks

In this paper, we consider wavelength rerouting in wavelength routed wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) networks with circuit switching, wherein lightpaths between source-destination pairs are dynamically established and released in response to a random pattern of arriving connection requests and connection holding times. The wavelength continuity constraint imposed by WDM networks leads to poor blocking performance. Wavelength rerouting is a viable and cost effective mechanism that ran improve the blocking performance by rearranging certain existing lightpaths to accommodate a new request. Recently, a rerouting scheme called “parallel move-to-vacant wavelength retuning (MTV-WR)” with many attractive features such as shorter disruption period and simple switching control, and a polynomial time rerouting algorithm, for this scheme, to minimize the weighted number of rerouted lightpaths have been proposed. This paper presents a time optimal rerouting algorithm for wavelength-routed WDM networks with parallel MTV-WR rerouting scheme. The algorithm requires only O(N²W) time units to minimize the weighted number of existing lightpaths to be rerouted, where N is the number of nodes in the network and W is the number of wavelength channels available on a fiber link. Our algorithm is an improvement over the earlier algorithm proposed in that it requires O(N³W+N²W²) time units, which is not time optimal. The simulation results show that our algorithm improves the blocking performance considerably and only very few lightpaths are required to be rerouted per rerouting. It is also established through simulation that our algorithm is faster than the earlier rerouting algorithm by measuring the time required for processing connection requests for different networks