Performance of Efficient Signal Detection for LED-ID Systems

In this paper, effects of reader-to-reader interference are investigated for LED identification (LED-ID) system in a multi-reader environment. The LED-ID readers typically use different channels to avoid collision between readers. However, in-channel collision usually happens in terms of interrogation range. A reader-to-reader interference scenario is proposed, and nominal interrogation range of a desired reader is derived from this model. In order to evaluate the LED-ID reader-to-reader interference quantitatively, an efficient detection scheme is proposed and simulated by employing spreading sequence. The spreading sequence is inserted between each user’s frame formats. In the receiver, the desired signal is detected by using correlation among inserted spreading sequences. From simulation results, it is confirmed that the proposed scheme is very effective to enhance reliability of LED-ID communication systems.     

A blind audio steganalysis based on feature fusion

In this paper, we present a blind steganalysis based on feature fusion. Features based on Short Time Fourier Transform (STFT), which consists of second-order derivative spectrum features of audio and Mel-frequency cepstrum coefficients, audio quality metrics and features on linear prediction residue are extracted separately. Then feature fusion is conducted. The performance of the proposed steganalysis is evaluated against 4 steganographic schemes: Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS), Quantization Index Modulation (QIM), ECHO embedding (ECHO), and Least Significant Bit embedding (LSB). Experiment results show that the classifying performance of the proposed detector is much superior to the previous work. Even more exciting is that the proposed methodology could detect the four steganography, with 85%+ classification accuracy achieved in all the detections, which makes the proposed steganalysis methodology capable of being regarded as a blind steganalysis, and especially useful when the steganalyzer are without the knowledge of the steganographic scheme employed in data embedding.     

A sub-space method to detect multiple wireless microphone signals in TV band white space

The main hurdle in the realization of dynamic spectrum access systems from the physical layer perspective is the reliable sensing of low power licensed users. One such scenario shows up in the unlicensed use of the TV bands where the TV band devices are required to sense extremely low power wireless microphones (WMs). The lack of technical standards among various wireless manufacturers and the resemblance of certain WM signals to narrow-band interference signals, such as spurious emissions, further aggravate the problem. Due to these uncertainties, it is extremely difficult to abstract the features of WM signals and hence develop robust sensing algorithms. To partly counter these challenges, we develop a two-stage sub-space algorithm that detects multiple narrow-band analog frequency-modulated signals generated by WMs. The performance of the algorithm is verified by using the real WM signals experimentally captured under low SNR conditions. The problem of differentiating between the WM and other narrow-band signals is left as future work.     

Reprocessing of thermally oxidized aluminum arsenide (AlAs) in epitaxial multilayers without delamination

Annealing or processing of AlAs that has been subjected to a wet thermal oxidation process can result in severe delamination of material at the oxidation front. This paper reports a procedure for preventing this delamination and presents a possible cause for the delamination.     

Wireless image transmission using turbo codes and optimal unequal error protection.

A novel image transmission scheme is proposed for the communication of set partitioning in hierarchical trees image streams over wireless channels. The proposed scheme employs turbo codes and Reed-Solomon codes in order to deal effectively with burst errors. An algorithm for the optimal unequal error protection of the compressed bitstream is also proposed and applied in conjunction with an inherently more efficient technique for product code decoding. The resulting scheme is tested for the transmission of images over wireless channels. Experimental evaluation clearly demonstrates the superiority of the proposed transmission system in comparison to well-known robust coding schemes.     

Modeling of the zero-bias resistance-area product of long wavelength infrared HgCdTe-on-Si diodes fabricated from molecular beam epitaxy-grown epitaxial layers

The electrical effects of dislocations has been studied by modeling zero-bias resistance-area product (R₀A) of long wavelength infrared diodes fabricated in molecular beam epitaxy (MBE)-grown HgCdTe-Si epitaxial films. Results show that dislocations influence both 40 K and 78 K R₀A products in high dislocation density (HgCdTe/Si) material. In low dislocation density samples (HgCdTe/CdZnTe), the variations in 78 K R₀A are limited by the composition (x) variations in Hg_1-xCd_xTe material, whereas dislocation contribution dominates the variations at 40 K. The origin of relatively large spread in 40 K R₀A in both types of samples is traced to the statistical variations in the core charges of dislocations. It is concluded that additional alternatives besides the reduction of dislocation density (such as control of core charges), may also need attention in order to make Si a viable substrate material for the growth of HgCdTe epitaxial layers suitable for devices operating at 40 K.     

Development of nano-composite lead-free electronic solders

Inert, hybrid inorganic/organic, nano-structured chemicals can be incorporated into low melting metallic materials, such as lead-free electronic solders, to achieve desired levels of service performance. The nano-structured materials technology of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes (POSS), with appropriate organic groups, can produce suitable means to promote bonding between nano-reinforcements and the metallic matrix. The microstructures of lead-free solder reinforced with surface-active POSS tri-silanols were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Wettability of POSS-containing lead-free solders to copper substrate was also examined. Steady-state deformation of solder joints made of eutectic Sn-Ag solder containing varying weight fractions of POSS of different chemical moieties were evaluated at different temperatures (25°C, 100°C, and 150°C) using a rheometric solids analyzer (RSA-III). Mechanical properties such as shear stress versus simple shear-strain relationships, peak shear stress as a function of rate of simple shear strain, and testing temperature for such nano-composite solders are reported. The service reliability of joints made with these newly formulated nano-composite solders was evaluated using a realistic thermomechanical fatigue (TMF) test profile. Evolution of microstructures and residual mechanical property after different extents of TMF cycles were evaluated and compared with joints made of standard, unreinforced eutectic Sn-Ag solder.     

Evaluation of Smart Phones for Remote Control of a Standard Hospital Room

The standard hospital room interface for control of communication and entertainment devices assumes a patient has the ability to hold and press mechanical switches. If the patient does not have these abilities, then the patient must wait for a nurse to walk by the room to ask for help. Mobile devices using the Android and iOS operating systems are compared to accommodate the limitations of a patient for communication and control of the hospital room environment. In order to design an appropriate system, analysis of currently available off-the-shelf technology is performed to find the appropriate configuration that is compatible with the hospital room environment and covers a clear patient need. Evaluation of components for a fully integrated system is shown. Strengths and weaknesses of each technology are discussed. Progress toward an integrated solution on a tablet is provided in the conclusion.     

A Novel Electroless Process for Embedding a Thin Film Resistor on the Benzocyclobutene Dielectric

To realize embedded resistors on multilayer benzocyclobutene (BCB) either on-chip or on-board, a low-cost large format electroless process for deposition of NiP and NiWP thin-film resistors using both low-temperature (25°C) and high-temperature (90°C) baths has been developed. The electroless process exhibits uniform resistor thickness in the submicron range and offers low profile and excellent adhesion to the BCB dielectric layer. The resistor films also act as a seed layer for direct electroplating of copper traces. The NiP alloys can also be tailored to a variable temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) with different alloy compositions. The electroless process can be adopted in the PCB manufacturing industries with no additional investment. This article is the first report on electroless plated thin film resistors on low loss BCB dielectric.     

A Distributed Query Protocol in Wireless Sensor Networks

In wireless sensor networks, query execution over a specific geographical region is an essential function for collecting sensed data. However, sensor nodes deployed in sensor networks have limited battery power. Hence, the minimum number of connected sensor nodes that covers the queried region in a sensor network must be determined. This paper proposes an efficient distributed protocol to find a subset of connected sensor nodes to cover the queried region. Each node determines whether to be a sensing node to sense the queried region according to its priority. The proposed protocol can efficiently construct a subset of connected sensing nodes and respond the query request to the sink node. In addition, the proposed protocol is extended to solve the k-coverage request. Simulation results show that our protocol is more efficient and has a lower communication overhead than the existing protocol.