This book addresses the challenges of designing high performance analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) based on the "smart data converters" concept, which implies context awareness, on-chip intelligence and adaptation. Readers will learn to exploit various information either a-priori or a-posteriori (obtained from devices, signals, applications or the ambient situations, etc.) for circuit and architecture optimization during the design phase or adaptation during operation, to enhance data converters performance, flexibility, robustness and power-efficiency. The authors focus on exploiting the a-priori knowledge of the system/application to develop enhancement techniques for ADCs, with particular emphasis on improving the power efficiency of high-speed and high-resolution ADCs for broadband multi-carrier systems.

This book focuses on the design of decentralized optimization methods applied to charging strategies for large-scale PEVs in electrical power systems. It studies several classes of charging coordination problems in large-scale PEVs by considering the distinct characteristics of PEV populations and electrical power systems, and subsequently designs decentralized methods based on distinct optimization schemes - such as non-cooperative games, mean-field games, and auction games - to achieve optimal/nearly optimal charging strategies. In closing, several performance aspects of the proposed algorithms, such as their convergence, computational complexity and optimality etc., are rigorously verified and demonstrated in numerical simulations. Given its scope, the book will benefit researchers, engineers, and graduate students in the fields of optimization, game theory, auction games, electrical power systems, etc., and help them design decentralized methods to implement optimal charging strategies in large-scale PEVs.

This book presents the proceedings of the 2nd Karl Schwarzschild Meeting on Gravitational Physics, focused on the general theme of black holes, gravity and information.Specialists in the field of black hole physics and rising young researchers present the latest findings on the broad topic of black holes, gravity, and information, highlighting its applications to astrophysics, cosmology, particle physics, and strongly correlated systems.

This book provides a step-by-step guide on how to construct a narrowband single photon source for the integration with atom-based memory systems. It combines the necessary theoretical background with crucial experimental methods and characterisations to form a complete handbook for readers at all academic levels. The future implementation of large quantum networks will require the hybridisation of photonic qubits for communication with quantum memories in the context of information storage. Such an interface requires carefully tailored single photons to ensure compatibility with the chosen memory. The source itself is remarkable for a number of reasons, including being the spectrally narrowest and brightest source of its kind; in addition, it offers a novel technique for frequency stabilisation in an optical cavity, together with exceptional portability. Starting with a thorough analysis of the current literature, this book derives the essential parameters needed to design the source, describes its individual components in detail, and closes with the characterisation of a single photon source.

Simulate realistic human motion in a virtual world with an optimization-based approach to motion prediction. With this approach, motion is governed by human performance measures, such as speed and energy, which act as objective functions to be optimized. Constraints on joint torques and angles are imposed quite easily. Predicting motion in this way allows one to use avatars to study how and why humans move the way they do, given specific scenarios. It also enables avatars to react to infinitely many scenarios with substantial autonomy. With this approach it is possible to predict dynamic motion without having to integrate equations of motion -- rather than solving equations of motion, this approach solves for a continuous time-dependent curve characterizing joint variables (also called joint profiles) for every degree of freedom.
Introduces rigorous mathematical methods for digital human modelling and simulationFocuses on understanding and representing spatial relationships (3D) of biomechanicsDevelops an innovative optimization-based approach to predicting human movementExtensively illustrated with 3D images of simulated human motion (full color in the ebook version)

This book systematically describes advanced metric wave radar and its practical applications, offering a comprehensive introduction to the engineering design methods from the perspectives of system design, antenna/feed and transmit/receive subsystems, as well as mechanical structure design. Focusing on the height-finding method, it describes in detail how the super-resolution technique can be used to solve the problem of low-angle height finding in metric wave radar. It also discusses the anti-jamming method for the unique jamming environment. Further, it presents narrowband target recognition methods to overcome the limitations of narrow absolute bandwidth in metric wave radar and to further explore the technique's potential. Cooperative detection for metric wave radar netting is also addressed, and the main experimental results are included. The book offers a valuable resource for professional engineers, researchers and teachers, as well as graduate students engaged in radar system engineering, electronic engineering, and signal processing.

This book provides an insight into recent technological trends and innovations in mobility solutions and platforms to improve mobility of visually impaired people. The authors' goal is to help to contribute to the social and societal inclusion of the visually impaired. The book's topics include, but are not limited to, obstacle detection systems, indoor and outdoor navigation, transportation sustainability systems, and hardware/devices to aid visually impaired people. The book has a strong focus on practical applications, tested in a real environment. Applications include city halls, municipalities, and companies that can keep up to date with recent trends in platforms, methodologies and technologies to promote urban mobility. Also discussed are broader realms including education, health, electronics, tourism, and transportation. Contributors include a variety of researchers and practitioners around the world. Features practical, tested applications of technological mobility solutions for visual impaired people; Presents topics such as obstacle detection systems, urban mobility, smart home services, and ambient assisted living; Includes a number of application examples in education, health, electronics, tourism, and transportation.

This book presents studies of complex nanostructures with unique optical responses from both theoretical and experimental perspectives. The theory approaches the optical response of a complex structure from both quantum-mechanical and semiclassical frameworks, and is used to understand experimental results at a fundamental level as well as to form a quantitative model to allow the design of custom nanostructures. The experiments utilize scanning transmission electron microscopy and its associated analytical spectroscopies to observe nanoscale optical effects, such as surface plasmon resonances, with nanometer-scale spatial resolution. Furthermore, there is a focus in the dissertation on the combination of distinct techniques to study the difficult-to-access aspects of the nanoscale response of complex nanostructures: the combination of complementary spectroscopies, the combination of electron microscopy and photonics, and the combination of experiment and theory. Overall, the work demonstrates the importance of observing nanoscale optical phenomena in complex structures, and observing them directly at the nanoscale.

In recent years, there has been growing interest in industrial systems, especially in robotic manipulators and mobile robot systems. As the cost of robots goes down and become more compact, the number of industrial applications of robotic systems increases. Moreover, there is need to design industrial systems with intelligence, autonomous decision making capabilities, and self-diagnosing properties. Intelligent Industrial Systems: Modeling, Automation and Adaptive Behavior analyzes current trends in industrial systems design, such as intelligent, industrial, and mobile robotics, complex electromechanical systems, fault diagnosis and avoidance of critical conditions, optimization, and adaptive behavior. This book discusses examples from major areas of research for engineers and researchers, providing an extensive background on robotics and industrial systems with intelligence, autonomy, and adaptive behavior giving emphasis to industrial systems design.

This book presents mathematical models of mob control with threshold (conformity) collective decision-making of the agents. Based on the results of analysis of the interconnection between the micro- and macromodels of active network structures, it considers the static (deterministic, stochastic and game-theoretic) and dynamic (discrete- and continuous-time) models of mob control, and highlights models of informational confrontation. Many of the results are applicable not only to mob control problems, but also to control problems arising in social groups, online social networks, etc. Aimed at researchers and practitioners, it is also a valuable resource for undergraduate and postgraduate students as well as doctoral candidates specializing in the field of collective behavior modeling.

Thermal Management for LED Applications provides state-of-the-art information on recent developments in thermal management as it relates to LEDs and LED-based systems and their applications. Coverage begins with an overview of the basics of thermal management including thermal design for LEDs, thermal characterization and testing of LEDs, and issues related to failure mechanisms and reliability and performance in harsh environments. Advances and recent developments in thermal management round out the book with discussions on advances in TIMs (thermal interface materials) for LED applications, advances in forced convection cooling of LEDs, and advances in heat sinks for LED assemblies.

This book provides comprehensive coverage of verification and debugging techniques for embedded software, which is frequently used in safety critical applications (e.g., automotive), where failures are unacceptable. Since the verification of complex systems needs to encompass the verification of both hardware and embedded software modules, this book focuses on verification and debugging approaches for embedded software with hardware dependencies. Coverage includes the entire flow of design, verification and debugging of embedded software and all key approaches to debugging, dynamic, static, and hybrid verification. This book discusses the current, industrial embedded software verification flow, as well as emerging trends with focus on formal and hybrid verification and debugging approaches.

This book shares the knowledge of active and prestigious worldwide researchers and scholars in the field of healthcare monitoring as authors investigate historical developments, summarize latest advancements, and envision future prospects on wearable, attachable, and invisible devices that monitor diverse physiological information. The coverage of the book spans multiple disciplines, from biomechanics, to bioelectricity, biochemistry, biophysics and biomaterials. There is also wide coverage of various physical and chemical quantities such as electricity, pressure, flow, motion, force, temperature, gases, and biomarkers. Each chapter explores the background of a specific monitoring device, as well as its physical and chemical principles and instrumentation, signal processing and data analysis, achieved outcomes and application scenarios, and future research topics. There are chapters on: Electrocardiograms, electroencephalograms, and electromyograms Measurement of flow phenomenon Latest wearable technologies for the quantification of human motion Various forms of wearable thermometers Monitoring of gases and chemical substances produced during metabolism...and more! This book is appropriate and accessible for students and scientists, as well as researchers in biomedical engineering, computer engineers, healthcare entrepreneurs, administrative officers, policy makers, market vendors, and healthcare personnel. It helps to provide us with insights into future endeavors, formulate innovative businesses and services, and will help improve people's health and quality of life.

The Renewable Energy Systems: Fundamentals and Source Characteristics is a set book coming in two volumes. The first volume is named "Fundamentals and Source Characteristics of Renewable Energy Systems". It will cover electric energy from alternative energy sources including solar, wind, water, hydropower, geothermal and ocean energy. This textbook is intended for an audience with little or no power engineering or renewable energy background. The second volume is called "Energy Storage, Grid Integration, Energy Economics and the Environment". This book will cover energy storage systems, bioenergy and hydrogen economy, grid integration of the renewable energy systems, distributed generation, economic analysis and environmental impacts of renewable energy systems. Solutions manual and Power Point slides are also included for instructors.

Comprised of two volumes, Electronic Design Automation for Integrated Circuits Handbook, Second Edition addresses all major areas of EDA for integrated circuits (ICs). Chapters contributed by leading experts authoritatively discuss an array of topics ranging from system design to physical implementation. New to This Edition: Major updates appearing in the initial phases of the design flow, where the level of abstraction keeps rising to support more functionality with lower non-recurring engineering (NRE) costs Significant revisions reflected in the final phases of the design flow, where the complexity due to smaller and smaller geometries is compounded by the slow progress of shorter wavelength lithography New coverage of cutting-edge applications and approaches realized in the decade since publication of the previous edition-these are illustrated by new chapters on high-level synthesis, system-on-chip (SoC) block-based design, back-annotating system-level models, 3D circuit integration, and clock design Offering improved depth and modernity, Electronic Design Automation for Integrated Circuits Handbook, Second Edition - Two-Volume Set provides a valuable, state-of-the-art reference for EDA students, researchers, and professionals.

This book presents an Intelligent Control Architecture (ICA) to enable multiple collaborating marine vehicles to autonomously carry out underwater intervention missions. The presented ICA is generic in nature but aimed at a case study where a marine surface craft and an underwater vehicle are required to work cooperatively. It is shown that they are capable of cooperating autonomously towards the execution of complex activities since they have different but complementary capabilities. The ICA implementation is verified in simulation, and validated in trials by means of a team of autonomous marine robots. This book also presents architectural details and evaluation scenarios of the ICA, results of simulations and trials from different maritime operations, and future research directions.

Ge and III-V compounds, semiconductors with high carrier mobilities, are candidates to replace Si as the channel in MOS devices. 2D materials - like graphene and MoS_2 - are also envisioned to replace Si in the future. This thesis is devoted to the first-principles modeling of the vibrational properties of these novel channel materials. The first part of the thesis focuses on the vibrational properties of various oxides on Ge, making it possible to identify the vibrational signature of specific defects which could hamper the proper functioning of MOSFETs. The second part of the thesis reports on the electronic and vibrational properties of novel 2D materials like silicene and germanene, the Si and Ge 2D counterparts of graphene. The interaction of these 2D materials with metallic and non-metallic substrates is investigated. It was predicted, for the first time, and later experimentally confirmed, that silicene could be grown on a non-metallic template like MoS_2, a breakthrough that could open the door to the possible use of silicene in future nanoelectronic devices.

Femto-second Probing of Photoinduced Refractive Index Charges in Semiconductor; H.M. Van Driel, E.C. Fox. Tunneling of Electrons and Holes in Asymmetries Double Quantum Wells; J. Shah, et al. Ultrashort Excitation in Semiconductors; W.E. Bon. Contact-Free Characterization of Electronic and Optoelectronic Devices with Ultrashort Laser Pulses; J. Kuhl. Vibrational Relaxation Studied with Light; A. Lagendijk. Relaxation of Frenkeltype Rotational and Vibrational Excitons in Diatomic Molecular Crystals; E. Goovaertz. Quantum Transient Transport; C. Jacoboni, F. Rossi. Study of Irreversible Processes in Condensed Matter by Nonlinear Time and Space Resolved Techniques; Chr. Flytzanis. Index.

This book highlights the latest research advances in the planning and management of electric distribution networks. It addresses various aspects of distribution network management including planning, operation, customer engagement, and technology accommodation. Given the importance of electric distribution networks in power delivery systems, effectively planning and managing them are vital to satisfying technical, economic, and customer requirements. A new planning and management philosophy, techniques, and methods are essential to handling uncertainties associated with the integration of renewable-based distributed generation, demand forecast, and customer needs. This book covers topics on managing the capacity of distribution networks, while also addressing the future needs of electric systems. The efficient and economical operation of distribution networks is an essential aspect of ensuring the effective use of resources. Accordingly, this book addresses operation and control approaches and techniques suitable for future distribution networks.

This book describes several techniques to address variation-related design challenges for analog blocks in mixed-signal systems-on-chip. The methods presented are results from recent research works involving receiver front-end circuits, baseband filter linearization, and data conversion. These circuit-level techniques are described, with their relationships to emerging system-level calibration approaches, to tune the performances of analog circuits with digital assistance or control. Coverage also includes a strategy to utilize on-chip temperature sensors to measure the signal power and linearity characteristics of analog/RF circuits, as demonstrated by test chip measurements. Describes a variety of variation-tolerant analog circuit design examples, including from RF front-ends, high-performance ADCs and baseband filters;Includes built-in testing techniques, linked to current industrial trends;Balances digitally-assisted performance tuning with analog performance tuning and mismatch reduction approaches;Describes theoretical concepts as well as experimental results for test chips designed with variation-aware techniques."

In this book the author presents two important findings revealed by high-precision magnetic penetration depth measurements in iron-based superconductors which exhibit high-transition temperature superconductivity up to 55 K: one is the fact that the superconducting gap structure in iron-based superconductors depends on a detailed electronic structure of individual materials, and the other is the first strong evidence for the presence of a quantum critical point (QCP) beneath the superconducting dome of iron-based superconductors. The magnetic penetration depth is a powerful probe to elucidate the superconducting gap structure which is intimately related to the pairing mechanism of superconductivity. The author discusses the possible gap structure of individual iron-based superconductors by comparing the gap structure obtained from the penetration depth measurements with theoretical predictions, indicating that the non-universal superconducting gap structure in iron-pnictides can be interpreted in the framework of A1g symmetry. This result imposes a strong constraint on the pairing mechanism of iron-based superconductors. The author also shows clear evidence for the quantum criticality inside the superconducting dome from the absolute zero-temperature penetration depth measurements as a function of chemical composition. A sharp peak of the penetration depth at a certain composition demonstrates pronounced quantum fluctuations associated with the QCP, which separates two distinct superconducting phases. This gives the first convincing signature of a second-order quantum phase transition deep inside the superconducting dome, which may address a key question on the general phase diagram of unconventional superconductivity in the vicinity of a QCP.

This book describes novel software concepts to increase reliability under user-defined constraints. The authors' approach bridges, for the first time, the reliability gap between hardware and software. Readers will learn how to achieve increased soft error resilience on unreliable hardware, while exploiting the inherent error masking characteristics and error (stemming from soft errors, aging, and process variations) mitigations potential at different software layers.

This book looks at the increasing interest in running microscopy processing algorithms on big image data by presenting the theoretical and architectural underpinnings of a web image processing pipeline (WIPP). Software-based methods and infrastructure components for processing big data microscopy experiments are presented to demonstrate how information processing of repetitive, laborious and tedious analysis can be automated with a user-friendly system. Interactions of web system components and their impact on computational scalability, provenance information gathering, interactive display, and computing are explained in a top-down presentation of technical details. Web Microanalysis of Big Image Data includes descriptions of WIPP functionalities, use cases, and components of the web software system (web server and client architecture, algorithms, and hardware-software dependencies). The book comes with test image collections and a web software system to increase the reader's understanding and to provide practical tools for conducting big image experiments. By providing educational materials and software tools at the intersection of microscopy image analyses and computational science, graduate students, postdoctoral students, and scientists will benefit from the practical experiences, as well as theoretical insights. Furthermore, the book provides software and test data, empowering students and scientists with tools to make discoveries with higher statistical significance. Once they become familiar with the web image processing components, they can extend and re-purpose the existing software to new types of analyses. Each chapter follows a top-down presentation, starting with a short introduction and a classification of related methods. Next, a description of the specific method used in accompanying software is presented. For several topics, examples of how the specific method is applied to a dataset (parameters, RAM requirements, CPU efficiency) are shown. Some tips are provided as practical suggestions to improve accuracy or computational performance.