Frequency domain post-processing technique based on POCS

A novel post-processing technique in the DCT domain, based on the theory of the projection onto convex sets (POCS), to reduce the blocking artifacts in the block discrete cosine transform (BDCT)-coded images, is proposed. Computer simulation results indicate that the proposed scheme performs better than conventional post-processing algorithms. Furthermore, the proposed algorithm can be implemented without DCT/IDCT operations. Estimates of computation savings vary between 41 and 64% depending on the task.     

Space-Frequency Precoding with Space–Tap Correlation Information at the Transmitter

In closed-loop methods for obtaining exact channel state information at the transmitter (CSI-Tx), the overhead associated with the feedback can be excessive for fast mobiles. Channel statistics-based CSI-Tx requires a much smaller overhead and is, therefore, attractive for use with fast mobiles. We study ways to exploit correlation-based CSI-Tx in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO)-orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) system. We focus on a channel environment in which spatial and tap correlations are present. We propose a channel model for the case that spatial and tap correlations can be separated and show that in this case channel correlation decreases the ergodic capacity of an MIMO-OFDM system when no CSI-Tx is available. However, this decrease can be mitigated when correlation-based CSI-Tx is exploited. We introduce an optimal precoding approach to maximize capacity with spatial and tap correlation-based CSI-Tx. We also propose a statistical waterfilling scheme, which leads to almost optimal capacity performance without requiring computationally intensive numerical optimization. Based on these approaches, the impact of spatial and tap correlations is investigated.     

Integrated MIMO antenna with high isolation characteristic

A novel two-channel multiple input multiple output (MIMO) antenna for handset terminals is proposed. The antenna is basically composed of two folded monopoles and is designed to operate in WiBro (Wireless Broadband Internet; the Korean version of mobile WiMax) service band, 2.30-2.39 GHz. To decrease mutual coupling between the antennas, ground wall and connecting line are added. Good impedance matching and enhanced isolation performances are observed. Radiation patterns clearly show omnidirectional performance of the proposed antenna     

Chiral Stereoisomer Engineering of Electron Transporting Materials for Efficient and Stable Perovskite Solar Cells

A series of chiral stereoisomers of electron transporting materials with two chiral substituents is rationally designed and synthesized, and the influence of stereoisomerism on their physical and electronic properties is investigated to demonstrate highly efficient and stable perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Compared to mesomeric naphthalene diimide (NDI) derivatives, which have heterochiral side groups with centrosymmetric molecular packing of symmetric‐shaped conformers in the crystalline state, enantiomeric NDI derivatives have homochiral side groups that exhibit non‐centrosymmetric molecular packing of asymmetric‐shaped conformers in the crystalline state and exhibit better solution processability based on one order of magnitude higher solubility. A similar trend is observed in different rylene diimide stereoisomers based on larger semiconducting core perylene diimide. The PSCs based on NDI enantiomers with good film‐forming ability and a very high lowest phase transition temperature (T_lowest) of 321 °C exhibit a high and uniform average power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 19.067 ± 0.654%. These PSCs also have a high temporal device stability, with less than 10% degradation of the PCE at 100 °C for 1000 h without encapsulation. Therefore, chiral stereoisomer engineering of charge transporting materials is a potential approach to achieve high solution processability, excellent performance, and significant temporal stability in organic electronic devices.     

Novel In0.52Al0.48As/In0.53Ga0.47As metamorphic high electron mobility transistors on GaAs substrate with InxGa1−xP graded buffer layers

Compositionally graded In_xGa_1−xP (x=0.48→x=1) metamorphic layers have been grown on GaAs substrate by solid source molecular beam epitaxy using a valved phosphorus cracker cell. Three series of samples were grown to optimize the growth temperature, V/III ratio and grading rate of the buffer layer. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and photoluminescence (PL) were used to characterize the samples. The following results have been obtained: (1) XRD measurement shows that all the samples are nearly fully strain relaxed and the strain relaxation ratio is about 96%; (2) the full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) of the XRD peak shows that the sample grown at 480°C offers better material quality; (3) the grading rate does not influence the FWHM of XRD and PL results; (4) adjustment of the V/III ratio from 10 to 20 improves the FWHM of XRD peak, and the linewidth of PL peak is close to the data obtained for the lattice-matched sample on InP substrate. The optimization of growth conditions will benefit the metamorphic HEMTs grown on GaAs using graded InGaP as buffer layers.     

Effective identification of dominant fully absorbing sets for Raptor-like LDPC codes

The error-rate floor of low-density parity-check (LDPC) codes is attributed to the trapping sets of their Tanner graphs. Among them, fully absorbing sets dominantly affect the error-rate performance, especially for short blocklengths. Efficient methods to identify the dominant trapping sets of LDPC codes were thoroughly researched as exhaustively searching them is NP-hard. However, the existing methods are ineffective for Raptor-like LDPC codes, which have many types of trapping sets. An effective method to identify dominant fully absorbing sets of Raptor-like LDPC codes is proposed. The search space of the proposed algorithm is optimized into the Tanner subgraphs of the codes to afford time-efficiency and search-effectiveness. For 5G New Radio (NR) base graph (BG) 2 LDPC codes for short blocklengths, the proposed algorithm finds more dominant fully absorbing sets within one seventh of the computation time of the existing search algorithm, and its search-effectiveness is verified using importance sampling. The proposed method is also applied to 5G NR BG1 LDPC code and Advanced Television Systems Committee 3.0 type A LDPC code for large blocklengths.     

Indicator Sensor Development and Fuel Cell Degradation Imaging

Although extensive research has been conducted, understanding the exact phenomena occurring during the operation of polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) remains difficult. This research attempted to identify new reasons for the reduced performance of PEFC using an imaging technique. To begin with, H⁺ and OH⁻ indicator sensors, which display red, blue, and green values (RGB) using digital microscopes, are developed and attached to each electrode of a membrane electrode assembly to enable quantitative analysis of ion generation. The proposed reaction in the fuel cell can be confirmed, and various reactions occurring in the electrode can be examined using this approach. In particular, H⁺ is generated at the anode and cathode of the anion exchange membrane fuel cell, which is found to be a major cause of performance deterioration.     

Studies on the performance characteristics and improvements of the piezoelectrically-driven micro gas compressors

This study presents the main characteristics of a micro gas compressor produced by microfabrication techniques on silicon wafers. The compressor consists of a compression chamber, check valves and a silicon membrane where the piezoelectric bimorph actuator is installed. Compressor performance was investigated under various working conditions of input voltage and frequency to the actuator at several downstream back pressures. Volume stroke ratio is a critical parameter for gas compressors. However, micro actuators do not generally produce large displacement, so the volume stroke ratio of the micro compressor is expected to be significantly less than that of conventional mechanical compressors. Therefore, the possibility of using dual compression was also investigated in order to improve micro compressor performance. The performance of the micro compressor is evaluated in this study through experiments and simulation.     

An Area Optimization Method for Digital Filter Design

In this paper, we propose an efficient design method for area optimization in a digital filter. The conventional methods to reduce the number of adders in a filter have the problem of a long critical path delay caused by the deep logic depth of the filter due to adder sharing. Furthermore, there is such a disadvantage that they use the transposed direct form (TDF) filter which needs more registers than those of the direct form (DF) filter. In this paper, we present a hybrid structure of a TDF and DF based on the flattened coefficients method so that it can reduce the number of flip‐flops and full‐adders without additional critical path delay. We also propose a resource sharing method and sharing‐pattern searching algorithm to reduce the number of adders without deepening the logic depth. Simulation results show that the proposed structure can save the number of adders and registers by 22 and 26%, respectively, compared to the best one used in the past.