Solubility of Pu(IV) in Weakly Alkaline Solutions (pH 9-14) Containing Silicate Anions

Behavior of hydrated ^238-242Pu(IV) oxide in 0.09-0.9 M NaOH containing 1 ×10^{- 3} M Na2SiO3 and in 0.1-0.2 M NaClO₄ containing 1×10^{- 3}-0.09 M Na2SiO3 (pH 11 and 9) was studied radiometrically with the aid of a scintillation counter. In alkaline solutions with pH 13.8-11 and high Na₂SiO₃ content, the Pu(IV) solubility increases owing to the reaction Pu(IV) + nSiO₃ ^{2 -} = Pu^{I V}(SiO₃ ^{2 -}) _n . At pH 9, Na₂SiO₃ has virtually no effect on the Pu(IV) solubility.     

Synthesis and Properties of Photoisomerizable Derivatives of Isosorbide and Their Use in Cholesteric Filters

This paper describes the synthesis of photoisomerizable derivatives of isosorbide. These derivatives contain a stilbene or cinnamate moiety and can therefore be used as photoisomerizable chiral compounds in cholesteric liquid‐crystalline mixtures. The reflection wavelength of cholesteric layers made from these mixtures is increased by UV irradiation due to the fact that the Z‐isomers of these derivatives exhibit a lower helical twisting power than the corresponding E‐isomers. The cinnamate derivatives are very suitable for use in cholesteric color filters that find application in liquid‐crystal displays.     

A Family of Far‐Infrared‐Transmitting Glasses in the Ga–Ge–Te System for Space Applications

Conditions of formation of bulk tellurium chalcogenide glasses, containing 70–80 at % Te associated to Ga and Ge are described. The characteristic temperatures are measured: the glass‐transition temperature, T_g, is situated in the range 140–185 °C and the difference T_x – T_g, where T_x is the onset crystallization temperature, is in the range 76–113 °C. Moreover, the optical transmission window is exceptional, ranging from 1.99 μm in the bandgap up to 28 μm in the phonon region. Developed within the framework of requirements for the Darwin mission (a search for and study of extrasolar planets), feasibility of infrared optical fibers formed from these glasses is studied. Drawing experiments are conducted with the glass Ga₂‐Ge₃Te₁₅, which possesses the maximum T_x – T_g, and a first optical fiber is presented.     

GaAs pHEMT-based technology for microwave applications in a volume MMIC production environment on 150-mm wafers

The establishment of a 150-mm (6-in) gallium arsenide (GaAs) facility is described together with the development of very high yielding and cost-effective semiconductor device technologies and a manufacturing capacity of over 40000 wafers/annum. The background to the demand for very high volumes of RF products for this market is discussed, together with the prospects for future growth. The paper describes recent process development by the utilization of a data-driven yield management system to support the delivery of high-quality RF products to customers. Finally, "end of line" DC and RF testing of finished 150-mm GaAs pHEMT foundry wafers is described, enabling scalar measurements of power, noise, and intermodulation products as well as vector measurements of S-parameters and noise parameters at frequencies of up to 40 GHz.     

Blind equalization - case of an unknown symbol period

We address the problem of estimating blindly a linearly modulated sequence of unknown rate transmitted over an unknown frequency selective channel. We achieve the goal by extending the concept of deconvolution to a cyclo-stationary context and present a generic class of functionals, the minimization of which achieves the equalization. This defines estimates of the symbol rate: by construction, they are insensitive to a lack of excess bandwidth, bestowing a clear advantage on them over the estimates of the literature.     

Phases Resulting from the Reduction of Manganese Metaniobate by Niobium and Tantalum

The sequence of reactions in the reduction of manganese metaniobate with Nb, NbO, and Ta is studied. The reduction of MnNb₂O₆ by Nb or NbO differs in some respects from that by Ta. No Mn(Nb_{2 – x} Ta _x )O_4.33 or Mn(Nb_{2 – x} Ta _x )O_3.67 solid solutions were detected in the reduction products. Tantalum converts directly into manganese metatantalate, without oxidation according to the scheme Ta–TaO–TaO₂–Ta₂O₅. A reaction scheme is suggested for the reduction of MnNb₂O₆ by niobium and tantalum. The unit-cell parameters of the orthorhombic phase MnNb₂O_4.33 resulting from the reduction of MnNb₂O₆ with Nb or Ta are determined.     

A single-chip tuner for DVB-T

A new architecture is presented for a single-chip tuner for digital terrestrial television, based on existing double conversion and direct conversion topologies. The new design forms part of a mixed-signal Digital Video Broadcasting-Terrestrial (DVB-T) receiver system, employing digital signal processing at baseband to ensure minimal performance requirements for the analog circuitry. To evaluate the potential performance of this new tuner/receiver system, high-level system simulations have been performed, followed by the construction of a prototype DVB-T receiver using a custom-designed analog ASIC which integrates all analog tuner blocks (including channel filtering) on one chip. Measured results from this chip, implemented in a 20-GHz bipolar technology, show an overall third-order input referred intercept point of 116 dB/spl mu/V, a noise figure of 14 dB and an automatic gain control range of 71.4 dB, drawing 250 mA at a 5-V supply.     

Complex amplitude estimation in the known steering matrix and generalized waveform case

We consider a special growth-curve (SGC) model with a known steering matrix and generalized waveform in the presence of unknown interference and noise. Several estimators of the complex amplitude based on this model are derived, including the methods of approximate maximum likelihood (AML), minimum variance distortionless response (MVDR), and amplitude and phase estimation (APES). We analyze the statistical properties of these estimators and show that in the presence of temporally white but spatially correlated noise and interference, AML is asymptotically statistically efficient for a large snapshot number while MVDR and APES are asymptotically equivalent but not statistically efficient. Via several numerical examples, we also show that when the noise and interference are both spatially and temporally correlated, the APES estimator can achieve better estimation accuracy and exhibit greater robustness than the other methods.     

Orthogonal space-time block codes: maximum likelihood detection for unknown channels and unstructured interferences

Space-time coding (STC) schemes for communication systems employing multiple transmit and receive antennas have been attracting increased attention. The so-called orthogonal space-time block codes (OSTBCs) have been of particular interest due to their good performance and low decoding complexity. In this paper, we take a systematic maximum-likelihood (ML) approach to the decoding of OSTBC for unknown propagation channels and unknown noise and interference conditions. We derive a low-complexity ML decoding algorithm based on cyclic minimization and assisted by a minimum amount of training data. Furthermore, we discuss the design of optimal training sequences and optimal information transfer to an outer decoder. Numerical examples demonstrate the performance of our algorithm.