Modulation of Mechanical Interactions by Local Piezoelectric Effects

Piezoelectricity is a well‐established property of biological materials, yet its functional role has remained unclear. Here, a mechanical effect of piezoelectric domains resulting from collagen fibril organisation is demonstrated, and its role in tissue function and application to material design is described. Using a combination of scanning probe and nonlinear optical microscopy, a hierarchical structuring of piezoelectric domains in collagen‐rich tissues is observed, and their mechanical effects are explored in silico. Local electrostatic attraction and repulsion due to shear piezoelectricity in these domains modulate fibril interactions from the tens of nanometre (single fibril interactions) to the tens of micron (fibre interactions) level, analogous to modulated friction effects. The manipulation of domain size and organisation thus provides a capacity to tune energy storage, dissipation, stiffness, and damage resistance.     

A High Throughput Configurable SDR Detector for Multi-user MIMO Wireless Systems

Spatial division multiplexing (SDM) in MIMO technology significantly increases the spectral efficiency, and hence capacity, of a wireless communication system: it is a core component of the next generation wireless systems, e.g. WiMAX, 3GPP LTE and other OFDM-based communication schemes. Moreover, spatial division multiple access (SDMA) is one of the widely used techniques for sharing the wireless medium between different mobile devices. Sphere detection is a prominent method of simplifying the detection complexity in both SDM and SDMA systems while maintaining BER performance comparable with the optimum maximum-likelihood (ML) detection. On the other hand, with different standards supporting different system parameters, it is crucial for both base station and handset devices to be configurable and seamlessly switch between different modes without the need for separate dedicated hardware units. This challenge emphasizes the need for SDR designs that target the handset devices. In this paper, we propose the architecture and FPGA realization of a configurable sort-free sphere detector, Flex-Sphere, that supports 4, 16, 64-QAM modulations as well as a combination of 2, 3 and 4 antenna/user configuration for handsets. The detector provides a data rate of up to 857.1 Mbps that fits well within the requirements of any of the next generation wireless standards. The algorithmic optimizations employed to produce an FPGA friendly realization are discussed.     

Voltage refinement by deficit HOLZ line geometry

A method of refining electron beam voltage from deficit line intersections, using a quasi-kinematic scattering approximation, is described and applied to a silicon standard. It is shown that dynamical corrections are necessary for higher-index zone axes, such as 310 and 411, where a single deficit line associated with one dominant Bloch state is visible. This leads to a substantial difference in the refined voltage compared with that obtained from a purely kinematic approximation. Neglect of this dynamical correction term effectively invokes a systematic error that may lead to high precision but poor accuracy in higher-order Laue zone measurements of beam voltage or lattice parameters. Although relatively small, differences in the dynamical correction necessary for these two zones are confirmed experimentally for 100-300 keV electrons.     

On the Development of Analogue Sampled-Data Signal Processing

This paper provides a historical perspective on thedevelopment of analogue sampled-data signal processing circuitsand systems. The evolution, role and current trends in the developmentof analogue sampled-data signal processing systems is surveyed.Firstly, the evolution of integrated circuit based techniques,culminating in the ubiquitous switched-capacitor technique istraced. Then the role that analogue sampled-data systems playwithin the context of a general information processing environmentis examined and the required characteristics are identified.Trends in silicon integrated circuit processing technology aresummarised and their impact on sampled analogue circuits areidentified. Finally, the application of analogue current-modetechniques, and in particular switched-currents, to overcomesome of the limitations of previous voltage based approaches,is discussed.     

iPhone出奇“智”胜系列——爱疯又爱聊

在这新新人类的社会里,人人都喜爱在网络中聊天,不管是与同学胡乱调侃、与另一半传达爱意,还是与同事召开网络会议。生活中,我们都离不开它。在家聊天可以靠电脑,但是出门在外,想聊个QQ或是MSN的话,该怎么办呢？这时候“爱疯”的“疯子”肯定会说“用iPhone嘛!”没错,iPhone作为以服务和程序为重点的手机产品,相关的聊天工具怎么可能会少呢？     

ZnO/ZnSe/ZnTe Heterojunctions for ZnTe-Based Solar Cells

ZnO and ZnSe are proposed as n-type layers in ZnTe heterojunction diodes to overcome problems associated with the n-type doping of ZnTe. The structural properties and electrical characteristics of ZnO/ZnTe and ZnO/ZnSe/ZnTe heterojunctions grown by molecular beam epitaxy on (001) GaAs substrates are presented. ZnO shows a strong preference for c-plane (0001) orientation resulting in a nonepitaxial relationship and high density of rotational domains for growth on ZnTe (001). ZnSe/ZnTe structures demonstrate a (001) epitaxial relationship with high density of {111} stacking faults originating at the heterojunction interface. ZnO/ZnSe/ZnTe heterojunction diodes show excellent diode rectification and clear photovoltaic response with open-circuit voltage of V _OC = 0.8 V.     

Signal Processing for Biometric Systems [DSP Forum]

This IEEE signal processing magazine (SPM) forum discuses signal processing applications, technologies, requirements, and standardization of biometric systems. The forum members bring their expert insights into issues such as biometric security, privacy, and multibiometric and fusion techniques. The invited forum members are Prof. Anil K. Jain of Michigan State University, Prof. Rama Chellappa of the University of Maryland, Dr. Stark C. Draper of theUniversity of Wisconsin in Madison, Prof. Nasir Memon of Polytechnic University, and Dr. P. Jonathon Phillips of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The moderator of the forum is Dr. Anthony Vetro of Mitsubishi Electric Research Labs, and associate editor of SPM.     

Analysis of in situ monitored thermal cycling benefits for wireless packaging early reliability evaluation

With the increasing complexity of the power amplifier (PA) module architecture, the probability of a thermally induced stress related failure mechanism increases. To help evaluate the increase in module complexity, a more sophisticated in situ monitored thermal cycle reliability test is available. The module is monitored in real time using a resistance daisy chain methodology designed to provide coverage using resistance feedback throughout the entire hierarchy of the module and carrier board interface. Monitored temperature cycling allows for real time failure feedback and enhanced failure signature information. Further, the testing technique has proven to be a valuable method for capturing the early stages of a module mechanical failure at the temperature extremes. Moreover, statistical evaluation of the failure data (Weibull analysis) is improved and better accuracy of the failures in time (FIT) rate can be determined.     

薄膜无源技术和无源微电路抬头射频技术掀起革命风暴

无线电技术的不断推陈出新已成为微电子技术领域发展的强大动力,无论是在客户应用中还是关键业务应用中,都要求解决方案的体型更小、功能更强、可靠性更高、信号清晰度更好,并且始终保持更低的能耗.这无疑对新技术提出了更高的要求,而射频电路的设计无疑是所有设计中极为关键的设计之一,本文通过介绍下一代薄膜无源技术和无源微电路来揭示如何迎接射频技术挑战.     

Nonequilibrium Operation of Arsenic Diffused Long-Wavelength Infrared HgCdTe Photodiodes

We demonstrated a device with a unique planar architecture using a novel approach for obtaining low arsenic doping concentrations in long-wavelength (LW) HgCdTe on CdZnTe substrates. HgCdTe materials were grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). We fabricated a p-on-n structure that we term P ⁺/π/N ⁺ where the symbol “π” is to indicate a drastically reduced extrinsic p-type carrier concentration (on the order of mid 10¹⁵ cm⁻³); P ⁺ and N ⁺ denote a higher doping density, as well as a higher energy gap, than the photosensitive base π-region. Fabricated devices indicated that Auger suppression is seen in the P ⁺/π/N ⁺ architecture at temperatures above 130 K and we obtained a saturation current on the order of 3 mA on 250-μm-diameter devices at 300 K with Auger suppression. Data shows that about a 50% reduction in dark current is achieved at 300 K due to Auger suppression. The onset of Auger suppression voltage is 450 mV at 300 K and 100 mV at 130 K. Results indicate that a reduction of the series resistance could reduce this further. A principal challenge was to obtain low p-type doping levels in the π-region. This issue was overcome using a novel deep diffusion process, thereby demonstrating successfully low-doped p-type HgCdTe in MBE-grown material. Near-classical spectral responses were obtained at 250 K and at 100 K with cut-off wavelengths of 7.4 μm and 10.4 μm, respectively. At 100 K, the measured non-antireflection-coated quantum efficiency was 0.57 at 0.1 V under backside illumination. Received November 7, 2007; accepted March 19, 2008