This authoritative new book focuses on recent developments in the instrumentation for sending voltages and currents. It covers new trends and challenges in the field, such as measurements of biocurrents, the increased speed of the components for data taking, testing of computers and integrated circuits where the measurement of rapid voltage and current variations on a very small geometrical scale is necessary. The first chapter concentrates on recent methods to sense voltages and currents, while the rest of the book investigates the applied side, covering for instance electrical power and energy measurements. The main purpose of this volume is to illustrate commonly employed techniques rather than track the scientific evolution and merits and therefore mainly covers patent literature aimed at industrial applications. It is an exciting addition, justifying the series' claim to cover state-of-the-art developments in both the applied and theoretical fields of sensors and actuators.

The measurement of voltages and currents is a common task in the field of electricity and electronics. From a technical point of view it is useful to identify schematically different steps of such a measurement. In a first step a voltage or a current is sensed, intermediate steps such as amplification, transmission and further treatment may follow to yield the result in the final step. Today in most cases microprocessors perform the final steps of such measurements. Analog-to digital converters digitise a voltage that is proportional to the value to be measured and a processor performs further computations and handles the storage and the display of the results. The prerequisite for such measurements are sensors or transducers that respond in a known way to the voltage or current to be measured. The emphasis of this book is put on recent developments of the instrumentation for sensing voltages and currents.

Aside from the general trend towards smaller, cheaper and more reliable instrumentation, new demands have arisen. New applications, like measurements of biocurrents, ask for higher sensitivities. Computers and integrated circuits pose new challenges. To exploit the increased speed of the components for data taking, suitable sensors are required. The accuracy that can be achieved depends more than ever on the first step, the acquisition of the raw data. The influence of the measurement process on the results becomes more crucial. Testing of integrated circuits themselves is a completely new application. For such tests one has to measure rapid voltage and current variations on very small geometrical scales. Here, as well as in the traditional high voltage applications, contactless measurements play an important role.

The organisation of this book is as follows: In the first chapter different methods to sense voltages and currents are described. For the sake of completeness most commonly used methods are mentioned, we concentrate, however, on those developed recently. The chapters address the subject from the side of different applications in which voltages and currents are sensed.

Since the main purpose of this publication is to illustrate commonly employed techniques rather than to track the scientific evolution and merits in particular fields, in general those publications that illustrate a particular measurement principle best have been cited. The citation of a particular reference does therefore not imply that this is the first or most pertinent publication in the respective field.

Organic Materials as Smart Nanocarriers for Drug Delivery presents the latest developments in the area of organic frameworks used in pharmaceutical nanotechnology. An up-to-date overview of organic smart nanocarriers is explored, along with the different types of nanocarriers, including polymeric micelles, cyclodextrins, hydrogels, lipid nanoparticles and nanoemlusions. Written by a diverse range of international academics, this book is a valuable reference for researchers in biomaterials, the pharmaceutical industry, and those who want to learn more about the current applications of organic smart nanocarriers.

Providing up-to-date information on sensors and tracking, this text presents practical, innovative design solutions for single and multiple sensor systems, as well as biomedical applications for automated cell motility study systems. It also discusses innovations and applications in multitarget tracking.

Now fully revised and updated, "VSAT Networks" continues to cover all of the essential issues involved with the installation and operation of networks of small earth stations called 'Very Small Aperture Terminal'. VSATs are typically one to two meters in antenna reflector diameter and communicate with one another, or with a central earth station called a 'hub', via a relay satellite in space. This informative volume enables the reader to understand how services, economics and regulatory aspects condition the success of such networks.

Key features include: configuration and practical applications of VSAT networks radio frequency (RF) link analysis, focusing on basic formulae and the evaluation of the RF link performance protocols used, with emphasis on the necessary adaptation of protocols used in terrestrial networks procedures for the dimensioning of the network according to the type and volume of generated traffic and to the expected quality of service

Written by a well-known, highly respected academic, this authoritative volume will appeal to students of telecommunications, electronics and computer science. Practising telecommunications engineers and technical managers involved in the planning, design and operation of networks and service provision will all find this book a valuable reference source.

This "Second Edition" has taken full advantage of the author's experience gained from the success of the first edition. The theoretical background has been expanded and the operational contents have been updated in view of recent developments in the field.

This is a comprehensive textbook and reference that provides a solid background in active sensing technology. Beginning with a historical overview and an introductory section on signal generation, filtering and modulation, it follows with a section on radiometry (infrared and microwave) as a background to the active sensing process. The core of the book is concerned with active sensing, starting with the basics of time-of-flight sensors (operational principles, components), and goes through the derivation of the radar range equation, and the detection of echo signals, both fundamental to the understanding of radar, sonar and lidar imaging. Several chapters cover signal propagation of both electromagnetic and acoustic energy, target characteristics, stealth and clutter. The remainder of the book involves the basics of the range measurement process, active imaging with an emphasis on noise and linear frequency modulation techniques, Doppler processing, and target tracking.

This thesis focuses on the design and synthesis of novel one-dimensional colloidal chalcogenide hetero-nanostructures for enhancing solar energy conversion applications. Semiconducting nanomaterials are particular attractive for energy conversion due to the quantum confinement effects dictating their unique optical and electronic properties. Steering the photo-induced charge-flow based on unique bandgap alignment in semiconductor heterojunctions is critical for photo-electric/chemical conversion. The author presents the controllable preparation strategies to synthesize 1D chalcogenide hetero-nanostructures with various fine structures, further been used as excellent template materials for preparing other novel and complex hybrid architectures through a series of chemical transformations. The heterogeneous growth mechanisms of novel hetero-nanostructures is studied for developing a facile and general method to prepare more novel heterostructures. The band gap structure simulations, detailed charge carrier behaviour and unique solar energy conversion properties of the prepared hybrid nanostructures are deeply investigated. This work would open a new door to rationally designing hybrid systems for photo-induced applications.

This text is a hands-on guide to time-frequency transforms for radar imaging and signal analysis. It explores more efficient ways to: extract dispersive scattering features; detect and extract weak signals in noise; form clear radar images; estimate parameters and perform motion compensation; detect and track moving targets in the synthetic aperture radar; and analyze vibration and rotation induced micro-Doppler. This resource introduces an image formation algorithm based on time-frequency-transforms, showing its advantage over the more conventional Fourier-based image formation. Referenced with over 170 equations and 80 illustrations, the book presents algorithms that help improve the result of radar imaging and signal processing. Moreover, the authors discuss future trends in time-frequency to analyze micro-Doppler, and provide a newly developed time-frequency approach to radar signal and image processing to help solve problems associated with conventional approaches.

Since publication of the first edition in 1988 many significant advances have occurred in IC chips that have driven the hybrid packaging processes toward even higher densities and greater performance. The almost exponential increase in density, complexity, and performance of integrated circuits over the past ten years (for example, ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), VHSIC (Very High Speed IC), VLSIC (Very Large Scale IC), and ULSIC (Ultra Large Scale IC) have driven developments in the interconnect substrates culminating in what is now known as multichip modules (MCM). However, the fundamentals of design, fabrication, and testing of MCMs are essentially the same as for hybrid microcircuit. In the authors' opinion MCMs are extensions of hybrid circuits that can accommodate the new generation of high-speed high-performance chips.

In this revised edition they have therefore expanded their treatment of hybrid circuits without finding it necessary to change the fundamentals. They have included a separate chapter on multichip modules and throughout the book have included new and emerging materials and processes that are beginning to be used. Examples include: metal-matrix composites and aluminum nitride as substrate materials, plastic encapsulated microcircuits and chip-on-board as low-cost alternatives to hermetic sealed packages, atmospheric friendly cleaning solvents and methods, and advanced high I/O density quad flat packages (QFP) and ball grid array (BGA) packages. Since the first edition, there have also been tremendous advances in software programs for thermal and electrical analysis and these are also treated in this new edition.

The abbreviated Table ofContents below includes the chapter titles and selected sub-headings.

This book fills in details that are often left out of modern books on the theory of antennas. The starting point is a discussion of some general principles that apply to all electronic systems and to antennas in particular. Just as time domain functions can be expanded in terms of sine waves using Fourier transforms, spatial domain functions can be expanded in terms of plane waves also using Fourier transforms, and K-space gain is the spatial Fourier transform of the aperture weighting function. Other topics discussed include the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) formulation of antenna gain and what is missing in this formulation, the effect of sky temperature on the often specified G/T ratio of antennas, sidelobe control using conventional and novel techniques, and ESA digital beamforming versus adaptive processing to limit interference. Presents content the author derived when first asked to evaluate the performance of an electronically scanned array under design with manufacturing imperfections and design limitations; Enables readers to understand the firm theoretical foundation of antenna gain even when they must start from well-known formulations rather than first principles; Explains in a straightforward manner the relationship between antenna gain and aperture area; Discusses the relationship between sidelobe control algorithms and aperture shape, how to take advantage of it, and what the penalties are; Shows the equivalence of Minimum-Variance, Distortionless Response (MVDR) and Space-Time Adaptive Processing (STAP) and how these algorithms can be used with ESA subarrays to mitigate interference.

The latest EM techniques for detecting concealed targets, whether explosives, weapons, or people

Extensively illustrated from basic principles to system design, the fundamental concepts of RF, microwave, millimeter wave, and terahertz detection systems and techniques to find concealed targets are explained in this publication. These concealed targets may be explosive devices or weapons, which can be buried in the ground, concealed in building structures, hidden under clothing, or inside luggage. Concealed targets may also be people who are stowaways or victims of an avalanche or earthquake.

Although much information is available in conference proceedings and professional society publications, this book brings all the relevant information in a single, expertly written and organized volume.

Readers gain an understanding of the physics underlying electromagnetic (EM) detection methods, as well as the factors that affect the performance of EM detection equipment, helping them choose the right type of equipment and techniques to meet the demands of particular tasks. Among the topics covered are:

Ultra-wideband radar and ground-penetrating radar

Millimeter, sub-millimeter, and terahertz systems

Radar systems including Doppler, harmonic, impulse, FMCW, and holographic

Radiometric systems

Nuclear quadrupole resonance systems

Author David Daniels has many years of experience designing and deploying EM systems to detect concealed targets. As a result, this publication is essential for scientists and engineers who are developing or using EM equipment and techniques for a diverse range of purposes, including homeland security, crime prevention, or the detection of persons.

Based on cutting-edge research projects in the field, this comprehensive 4-volume book series provides the latest details and covers the most impactful aspects of mobile, wireless, and broadband communications development. These books present key systems and enabling technologies in a clear and accessible manner, offering you a detailed roadmap the future evolution of next generation communications. Drawing upon the insights of leading experts in the field, each of the four volumes is dedicated to an area of critical importance, including Radio Interfaces; Networks, Services and Applications; Reconfigurability; and Ad Hoc Networks.

This book presents the statistical theory of complex wave scattering and quantum transport in physical systems which have chaotic classical dynamics, as in the case of microwave cavities and quantum dots, or which possess quenched randomness, as in the case of disordered conductors - with an emphasis on mesoscopic fluctuations. The statistical regularity of the phenomena is revealed in a natural way by adopting a novel maximum-entropy approach. Shannon's information entropy is maximised, subject to the symmetries and constraints which are physically relevant, within the powerful and non-perturbative theory of random matrices; this is a most distinctive feature of the book. Aiming for a self-contained presentation, the quantum theory of scattering, set in the context of quasi-one-dimensional, multichannel systems, and related directly to scattering problems in mesoscopic physics, is introduced in chapters two and three. The linear-response theory of quantum electronic transport, adapted to the context of mesoscopic systems, is discussed in chapter four. These chapters, together with chapter five on the maximum-entropy approach and chapter eight on weak localization, have been written in a most pedagogical style, suitable for use on graduate courses. In chapters six and seven, the problem of electronic transport through classically chaotic cavities and quasi-one-dimensional disordered systems is discussed. Many exercises are included, most of which are worked through in detail, aiding graduate students, teachers, and research scholars interested in the subject of quantum transport through disordered and chaotic systems.

This book focuses on the microscopic understanding of the function of organic semiconductors. By tracing the link between their morphological structure and electronic properties across multiple scales, it represents an important advance in this direction. Organic semiconductors are materials at the interface between hard and soft matter: they combine structural variability, processibility and mechanical flexibility with the ability to efficiently transport charge and energy. This unique set of properties makes them a promising class of materials for electronic devices, including organic solar cells and light-emitting diodes. Understanding their function at the microscopic scale - the goal of this work - is a prerequisite for the rational design and optimization of the underlying materials. Based on new multiscale simulation protocols, the book studies the complex interplay between molecular architecture, supramolecular organization and electronic structure in order to reveal why some materials perform well - and why others do not. In particular, by examining the long-range effects that interrelate microscopic states and mesoscopic structure in these materials, the book provides qualitative and quantitative insights into e.g. the charge-generation process, which also serve as a basis for new optimization strategies.

The book presents innovative scientific research works by academics, research scholars and students, presented at the 2017 International Conference on Energy, Materials and Information Technology at Amity University Jharkhand, India. It includes contributions on system solutions based on soft computing techniques, and covers innovative soft computing techniques and tools with advanced applications. A major focus of the book is on presenting interdisciplinary problems and how they can be solved using information technology, together with innovative connections to other disciplines. It also includes papers on cloud computing and WSN-related real-time research.

Mapping and localization are two essential tasks in autonomous mobile robotics. Due to the unavoidable noise that sensors present, mapping algorithms usually rely on loop closure detection techniques, which entail the correct identification of previously seen places to reduce the uncertainty of the resulting maps. This book deals with the problem of generating topological maps of the environment using efficient appearance-based loop closure detection techniques. Since the quality of a visual loop closure detection algorithm is related to the image description method and its ability to index previously seen images, several methods for loop closure detection adopting different approaches are developed and assessed. Then, these methods are used in three novel topological mapping algorithms. The results obtained indicate that the solutions proposed attain a better performance than several state-of-the-art approaches. To conclude, given that loop closure detection is also a key component in other research areas, a multi-threaded image mosaicing algorithm is proposed. This approach makes use of one of the loop closure detection techniques previously introduced in order to find overlapping pairs between images and finally obtain seamless mosaics of different environments in a reasonable amount of time.

In a face-to-face conversation, only 10 % of the message is conveyed by words, the remaining 90 % is carried via vocal pitch, emphasis, facial expressions, body language, and other related factors.

The challenge for future telecommunication systems will be to bridge the shortcomings of our current voice-orientated systems. Video conferencing and live chats are replacing our traditional forms of communication. Worldwide telecommunications networks are being redesigned to provide new multimedia services.

The goal of this book is to bring together end users, service providers and researchers from academia as well as the communications industry to share state-of-the-art information on projects, products, services, and processes for future virtual reality (VR) telecommunications systems.

Virtual Reality Technologies for Future Telecommunications Systems features:

• today' s telecommunications systems and services - problems and limitations

• a guide to employing VR in telecommunications networks

• cutting edge research & rare insights into experimental VR telecommunications systems and services

• aspects and challenges of the emerging technologies (user interface design, user behaviour, computational complexity, high-speed Internet)

• accompanying CD with software demos and video footage

This book investigates observer-fault estimation techniques in detail, while also highlighting recent research and findings regarding fault estimation. Many practical control systems are subject to possible malfunctions, which may cause significant performance loss or even system instability. To improve the reliability, performance and safety of dynamical systems, fault diagnosis techniques are now receiving considerable attention, both in research and applications, and have been the subject of intensive investigations. Fault detection - the essential first step in fault diagnosis - is a binary decision-making process used to determine whether or not a fault has occurred. In turn, fault isolation is used to identify the location of the faulty component, while fault estimation is used to identify the size of the fault online. Compared with the problems involved in fault detection and isolation, fault estimation is considerably more challenging.

Suitable as a reference work for reliability professionals or as a text for advanced undergraduate or graduate students, this book introduces the reader to the widely dispersed reliability literature of microelectronic and electronic-optional devices. Reliability and Failure of Electronic Materials and Devices integrates a treatment of chip and packaging level failures within the context of the atomic mechanisms and models used to explain degradation, and the statistical handling of lifetime data. Electromigration, dielectric radiation damage and the mechanical failure of contacts and solder joints are among the failure mechanisms considered. An underlying thread of the book concerns product defects--their relation to yield and reliability, the role they play in failure, and the way they are experimentally exposed.
The reader will gain a deeper physical understanding of failure mechanisms in electronic materials and devices, acquire skills in the mathematical handling of reliability data, and better appreciate future technology trends and the reliability issues they raise.
Key Features
* Discusses reliability and failure on both the chip and packaging levels
* Handles the role of defects in yield and reliability
* Includes a tutorial chapter on the mathematics of reliability
* Focuses on electromigration, dielectric breakdown, hot-electron effects, electrostatic discharge, corrosion, radiation damage and the mechanical failure of packages, contacts, and solder joints
* Considers defect detection methods and failure analysis techniques

Mobile Commerce is an emerging phenomenon based on quickly growing applications of wireless technologies and mobile communications. Mobile communication is becoming as essential need for individuals and businesses in their daily actions. Using mobile commerce, organizations can offer customers services that are easily accessed by a mobile device anytime and anywhere. Wireless Communications and Mobile Commerce collects holistic perspectives contributed by leading professionals to explore strategic considerations regarding potential opportunities and issues in mobile commerce. These professionals' discussions and contributions focus on providing a comprehensive understanding surrounding business strategies, models, management paradigms, architectures, infrastructure, strengths and weaknesses.

Advances in Imaging and Electron Physics, Volume 204, merges two long-running serials, Advances in Electronics and Electron Physics and Advances in Optical and Electron Microscopy. The series features extended articles on the physics of electron devices (especially semiconductor devices), particle optics at high and low energies, microlithography, image science, and digital image processing, electromagnetic wave propagation, electron microscopy, and the computing methods used in all these domains.

Opto-mechanical Fiber Optic Sensors: Research, Technology, and Applications in Mechanical Sensing offers comprehensive coverage of the theoretical aspects of fiber optic sensors (FOS), along with current and emerging applications in the mechanical, petroleum, biomedical, biomechanical, aerospace and automotive industries. Special attention is given to FOS applications in harsh environments. Due to recent technology advances, optical fibers have found uses in many industrial applications. Various sectors are major targets for FOS's capable of measuring mechanical parameters, such as pressure, stress, strain and temperature. Opto-mechanical FOS's offer unique advantages, including immunity to electromagnetic interference, high fidelity and signal-to-noise ratio, low-loss remote sensing and small size.

Micro-nanoelectronics Devices: Modeling of Diffusion and Operation Processes concentrates on the modeling of diffusion processes and the behavior of modern integrated components, from material, to architecture. It goes through the process, the device and the circuit regarding today's widely discussed nano-electronics, both from an industry perspective and that of public entities.