Green Biocomposites for Thermoelectric Wearable Applications

The materials commonly used to fabricate thermoelectric devices are tellurium, lead, and germanium. These materials ensure the best thermoelectric performance, but exhibit drawbacks in terms of availability, sustainability, cost, and manufacturing complexity. Moreover, they do not guarantee a safe and cheap implementation in wearable thermoelectric applications. Here, p‐Type and n‐type flexible thermoelectric textiles are produced with sustainable and low‐cost materials through green and scalable processes. Cotton is functionalized with inks made with biopolyester and carbon nanomaterials. Depending on the nanofiller, i.e., graphene nanoplatelets, carbon nanotubes, or carbon nanofibers, positive or negative Seebeck coefficient values are obtained, resulting in a remarkable electrical conductivity value of 55 S cm^?1 using carbon nanotubes. The best bending and washing stability are registered for the carbon nanofiber‐based biocomposites, which increase their electrical resistance by 5 times after repeated bending cycles and only by 30% after washing. Finally, in‐plane flexible thermoelectric generators coupling the best p‐ and n‐type materials are fabricated and analysed, resulting in an output voltage of ≈1.65 mV and a maximum output power of ≈1.0 nW by connecting only 2 p/n thermocouples at a temperature difference of 70 °C.     

Inverse Design of Mechanical Metamaterials That Undergo Buckling

Metamaterials are man‐made materials which get their properties from their structure rather than their chemical composition. Their mesostructure is specifically designed to create functionalities not found in nature. However, despite the broad variety of metamaterials developed in recent years, a straightforward procedure to design these complex materials with tailored properties has not yet been established. Here, the inverse design problem is tackled by introducing a general optimization tool to explore the range of material properties that can be achieved. Specifically, a stochastic optimization algorithm is applied and its applicability to disjoint problems is demonstrated, with a focus on tuning the buckling properties of mechanical metamaterials, including experimental verification of the predictions. Besides this problem, this algorithm can be applied to a large variety of systems that, because of their complexity, would be challenging otherwise. Potential applications range from the design of optomechanical resonators, acoustic band gap materials, to dielectric metasurfaces.     

Connectivity of Ad Hoc Networks with Link Asymmetries Induced by Shadowing

The aim of this letter is to determine the minimum node density to achieve a connected large-scale ad hoc network, where every node has the same transmitting and receiving capabilities. Due to the log-normal shadowing, links are unidirectional in general. Contrary to the prevailing opinion, we argue that such asymmetries result into a "reduced" connectivity graph, which, from the point of view of MAC and routing protocols, is to be considered the true or effective connectivity graph. Accordingly, we derive a new formula for the connection probability between two nodes in order to compute global connectivity. Finally, theoretical findings, borrowed from random graphs theory, are compared to numerical simulation results in synthetic wireless network scenarios.     

Adaptive Call Admission Control for QoS/Revenue Optimization in CDMA Cellular Networks

In this paper, we show how online management of both quality of service (QoS) and provider revenue can be performed in CDMA cellular networks by adaptive control of system parameters to changing traffic conditions. The key contribution is the introduction of a novel call admission control and bandwidth degradation scheme for real-time traffic as well as the development of a Markov model for the admission controller. This Markov model incorporates important features of 3G cellular networks, such as CDMA intra- and inter-cell interference, different call priorities and soft handover. From the results of the Markov model the threshold for maximal call degradation is periodically adjusted according to the currently measured traffic in the radio access network. As a consequence, QoS and revenue measures can be optimized with respect to a predefined goal. To illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed QoS/revenue management approach, we present quantitative results for the Markov model and a comprehensive simulation study considering a half-day window of a daily usage pattern.     

A syntax-preserving error resilience tool for JPEG 2000 based on error correcting arithmetic coding.

JPEG 2000 is the novel ISO standard for image and video coding. Besides its improved coding efficiency, it also provides a few error resilience tools in order to limit the effect of errors in the codestream, which can occur when the compressed image or video data are transmitted over an error-prone channel, as typically occurs in wireless communication scenarios. However, for very harsh channels, these tools often do not provide an adequate degree of error protection. In this paper, we propose a novel error-resilience tool for JPEG 2000, based on the concept of ternary arithmetic coders employing a forbidden symbol. Such coders introduce a controlled degree of redundancy during the encoding process, which can be exploited at the decoder side in order to detect and correct errors. We propose a maximum likelihood and a maximum a posteriori context-based decoder, specifically tailored to the JPEG 2000 arithmetic coder, which are able to carry out both hard and soft decoding of a corrupted code-stream. The proposed decoder extends the JPEG 2000 capabilities in error-prone scenarios, without violating the standard syntax. Extensive simulations on video sequences show that the proposed decoders largely outperform the standard in terms of PSNR and visual quality.     

Lone‐Pair‐Induced Covalency as the Cause of Temperature‐ and Field‐Induced Instabilities in Bismuth Sodium Titanate

Bismuth sodium titanate (BNT)‐derived materials have seen a flurry of research interest in recent years because of the existence of extended strain under applied electric fields, surpassing that of lead zirconate titanate (PZT), the most commonly used piezoelectric. The underlying physical and chemical mechanisms responsible for such extraordinary strain levels in BNT are still poorly understood, as is the nature of the successive phase transitions. A comprehensive explanation is proposed here, combining the short‐range chemical and structural sensitivity of in situ Raman spectroscopy (under an applied electric field and temperature) with macroscopic electrical measurements. The results presented clarify the causes for the extended strain, as well as the peculiar temperature‐dependent properties encountered in this system. The underlying cause is determined to be mediated by the complex‐like bonding of the octahedra at the center of the perovskite: a loss of hybridization of the 6s² bismuth lone pair interacting with the oxygen p‐orbitals occurs, which triggers both the field‐induced phase transition and the loss of macroscopic ferroelectric order at the depolarization temperature.     

Lead‐Free Polycrystalline Ferroelectric Nanowires with Enhanced Curie Temperature

Ferroelectrics are important technological materials with wide‐ranging applications in electronics, communication, health, and energy. While lead‐based ferroelectrics have remained the predominant mainstay of industry for decades, environmentally friendly lead‐free alternatives are limited due to relatively low Curie temperatures (T _C) and/or high cost in many cases. Efforts have been made to enhance T _C through strain engineering, often involving energy‐intensive and expensive fabrication of thin epitaxial films on lattice‐mismatched substrates. Here, a relatively simple and scalable sol–gel synthesis route to fabricate polycrystalline (Ba_0.85Ca_0.15)(Zr_0.1Ti_0.9)O₃ nanowires within porous templates is presented, with an observed enhancement of T _C up to ≈300 °C as compared to ≈90 °C in the bulk. By combining experiments and theoretical calculations, this effect is attributed to the volume reduction in the template‐grown nanowires that modifies the balance between different structural instabilities. The results offer a cost‐effective solution‐based approach for strain‐tuning in a promising lead‐free ferroelectric system, thus widening their current applicability.