Optimizing throughput and resource utilization using pipelining: Transformation based approach

A simple formulation of pipelining: Pipelining withN stages is equivalent to retiming where the number of delays on all inputs or all outputs, but not both, is increased byN is used as the basis for a convenient and efficient treatment of pipelining in the design of application specific computers.Pipelining according to the objective function (throughput or resource utilization) and the latency is introduced. For two polynomial complexity pipelining classes, optimal algorithms are presented. For two other classes both proofs of NP-completeness and efficient probabilistic algorithms are presented. Both theoretical and experimental properties of pipelining are discussed and a relationship with other transformations is explored. Due to similar formulations for both software pipelining and the pipelining presented here, all results can be easily modified for use in compilers for general purpose computers. We have also developed a polynomial complexity algorithm for determining the iteration bound.This work was done while the first author was at the University of California, Berkeley.     

State of the Art of Molecular Visualization in Immersive Virtual Environments

Visualization plays a crucial role in molecular and structural biology. It has been successfully applied to a variety of tasks, including structural analysis and interactive drug design. While some of the challenges in this area can be overcome with more advanced visualization and interaction techniques, others are challenging primarily due to the limitations of the hardware devices used to interact with the visualized content. Consequently, visualization researchers are increasingly trying to take advantage of new technologies to facilitate the work of domain scientists. Some typical problems associated with classic 2D interfaces, such as regular desktop computers, are a lack of natural spatial understanding and interaction, and a limited field of view. These problems could be solved by immersive virtual environments and corresponding hardware, such as virtual reality head-mounted displays. Thus, researchers are investigating the potential of immersive virtual environments in the field of molecular visualization. There is already a body of work ranging from educational approaches to protein visualization to applications for collaborative drug design. This review focuses on molecular visualization in immersive virtual environments as a whole, aiming to cover this area comprehensively. We divide the existing papers into different groups based on their application areas, and types of tasks performed. Furthermore, we also include a list of available software tools. We conclude the report with a discussion of potential future research on molecular visualization in immersive environments.     

Threshold Fluence Measurement for Laser Liftoff of InP Thin Films by Selective Absorption

We explore conditions for achieving laser liftoff in epitaxially grown heterojunctions, in which single crystal thin films can be separated from their growth substrates using a selectively absorbing buried intermediate layer. Because this highly non‐linear process is subject to a variety of process instabilities, it is essential to accurately characterize the parameters resulting in liftoff. Here, we present an InP/InGaAs/InP heterojunction as a model system for such characterization. We show separation of InP thin films from single crystal InP growth substrates, wherein a ≈10 ns, Nd:YAG laser pulse selectively heats a coherently strained, buried InGaAs layer. We develop a technique to measure liftoff threshold fluences within an inhomogeneous laser spatial profile, and apply this technique to determine threshold fluences of the order 0.5 J cm^?2 for our specimens. We find that the fluence at the InGaAs layer is limited by non‐linear absorption and InP surface damage at high powers, and measure the energy transmission in an InP substrate from 0 to 8 J cm^?2. Characterization of the ejected thin films shows crack‐free, single crystal InP. Finally, we present evidence that the hot InGaAs initiates a liquid phase front that travels into the InP substrate during liftoff.

     

Bulk mass flow in a vibratory finisher: mechanisms and effect of process parameters

Vibratory finishing is a widely-used manufacturing process in which a vibrating container filled with granular media becomes fluidized. The resulting bulk flow entrains workpieces and exposes their surfaces to the impacts resulting from the small-scale media vibrations. The bulk flow is responsible for entrainment and mixing, while the media vibration does work on the surfaces. The selection of machine vibration parameters is commonly based on experience due to the difficulty in predicting the fluidized bed behavior. In this work, a discrete element method was used to investigate how the bulk flow in an actual tub finisher filled with steel balls depends on the tub motion parameters through a parametric study. The underlying mechanisms that create and drive the bulk flow were identified by examining the relationships between the bulk flow rates and the wall forces. Finally, the connection between the wall motion and the wall forces was investigated. The tub frequency was the most effective control parameter and there was an optimal phase difference between the horizontal and vertical vibrations to maximize bulk flow. The relationship between the media packing at the walls and the tangential forces between the walls and the media explained the formation and speed of the bulk flow. Lastly, it was shown that the tangential wall forces, unlike the normal forces, cannot be obtained from the known wall motion alone since they also depend on the media velocities relative to the walls.     

Influence of process parameters on average particle speeds in a vibratory finisher

Vibratory finishing (VF) employs vibrationally-fluidized granular media to finish the surfaces of workpieces that are entrained in the flowing media. Its application has been based mostly on experience and trial-and-error due to the complexity of the granular material behavior. The present study used discrete element modeling (DEM) to investigate how the movement of a commercial two-dimensional tub finisher influenced the average particle speed of the media in a bed of smooth, steel, spherical particles, and thus the work that would be done on an entrained workpiece. The parameters governing the tub wall motion (frequency, in-plane amplitudes, and phases of vibration) and the coefficient of friction between the media and the wall were systematically varied in 71 three-dimensional DEM simulations. The average particle speed was affected mostly by the vertical amplitude of tub motion rather than by the frequency, and was mostly independent of other parameters of motion and of the wall friction. A strong relationship was found between the average particle speed and the work done by the wall per cycle of vibration. The normal force on the wall was also found to correlate strongly with the normal component of the wall velocity. Together, these relationships offer the potential to enable the analytical prediction of the average particle speed based on the motion parameters of the tub alone. The paper provides a set of practical guidelines for the control of the average particle speed in VF that are explained by the forces between the media and walls of the tub finisher.