Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Solid state communications'

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2006.
Buck, John, Committee Co-Chair ; Ferguson, Ian, Committee Chair ; Krishnamurthy,Vikram, Committee Member ; Chang, Gee-Kung, Committee Member ; Callen, W. Russell Jr., Committee Member ; Summers, Christopher, Committee Member.

This dissertation presents an innovative solid-state current amplifier based on impact-ionization. Unlike avalanche photodetectors which use the same amplification principle, this device can be integrated with any external current source. A discrete amplifier was built on a silicon surface using standard CMOS fabrication processes including lithography, oxidation, ion implantation, diffusion, chemical wet etching, metal deposition, annealing, and rapid thermal processing. Testing was performed by connecting the device to a silicon photodiode, indium-gallium-arsenide photodiodes, and a function generator to demonstrate its compatibility with arbitrary current sources. Current gains above 100 along with pre-amplified leakage currents of less than 10 nA were measured. This amplifier can also be cascaded to achieve very high gains similar to the photomultiplier tube but with much smaller size and no vacuum environment required. Testing was done by amplifying the output signal from an external silicon photodiode. Current gains over 600 were measured when two amplifying devices were cascaded. Additionally, the gain saturation phenomenon of the amplifier due to the space-charge effect is investigated. The measured gain saturation is observed to match very well with the theoretical based predictions. We also present a design rule for obtaining high current gain from the cascaded structure without experiencing gain saturation. Initial bandwidth of the SIM when connected to a silicon photodiode was measured to be about 300 kHz. As we replace the photodiode by a function generator, the bandwidth improved to 450 kHz which is the frequency limit of the system. These results were made on the first generation of SIM devices. We discovered that the space-charge resistance Rsc plays a significant role in determining frequency response. In future generations of the device, we can begin with optimizing the device geometry to reduce this resistance. Also, we can reduce the size of the metal pad and increase the oxide layer thickness to further minimize the device capacitance for faster response. Because of the low-noise gain mechanism employed, this device is of potential interest to a variety of fields requiring high-sensitivity optical or electronic detection.

Thesis (M. S.)--Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2007.
Tentzeris, Manos, Committee Chair ; Laskar, Joy, Committee Member ; Papapolymerou, John, Committee Member.

This document contains a proposal for the creation of a simulator that can accurately model the interaction of electromagnetic (EM) and semiconductor effects for modern wireless devices including nonlinear and/or active devices. The proposed simulator couples the balanced semiconductor equations (charge, momentum, kinetic energy) with a FDTD full-wave Yee-based electromagnetic (EM) simulator. The resultant CAD tool is able to model the response of one semiconductor device to both small signal and DC bias based on the process parameters (material, charge distribution and doping) without any a-priori knowledge of the device performance characteristics, thus making it extremely useful in modeling and integrating novel devices in RF and Wireless topologies. As a proof of concept an n+--i--n+ diode will be simulated. In the future, more complicated structures, such as MODFETs, will be modeled as well.

Adaptive and smart systems are growing in popularity as we shift toward personalization as a culture. With progressive demands on energy efficiency, it is increasingly important to focus on the utilization of energy in a novel way. This thesis investigates a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) mirror with the express intent to provide flexibility in solid state lighting (SSL). By coupling the micromirror to an optical source, the reflected light may be reshaped and directed so as to optimize the overall illumination profile. In addition, the light may be redirected in order to provide improved signal strength in visible light communications (VLC) with negligible impact on energy demands. With flexibility and full analog control in mind, the design of a fully integrated tip-tilt-piston micromirror with an additional variable focus degree of freedom is outlined. Electrothermal actuators are used to both steer the light and tune the focal length. A detailed discussion of the underlying physics behind composite beams and thermal actuators is addressed. This leads directly into an overview of the two main mirror components, namely the segmented mirror and the deflection actuators. An in-depth characterization of the dynamics of the mirror is discussed including the linearity of the thermal response. Frequency domain analysis of such a system provides insight into tunable mechanical properties such as the resonant frequency and quality factor. The degenerate resonant modes can be separated significantly. It is shown that the frequency response may be tuned by straining specific actuators and that it follows a predictable pattern. As a result, the system can be scanned at increasingly large angles. In other words, coupled mechanical modes allow variable damping and amplification. A means to determine the level of coupling is examined and the mode shape variations are tracked as a function of the tuning parameters. Finally, the applications of such a device are explored and tested. Such applications include reliable signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) enhancements in VLC of 30 dB and color tunable steerable lights using laser diodes. A brief discussion of the implications of dynamic illumination and tunable systems is juxtaposed with an explanation behind the integration of an electrothermal micromirror and an all digital driver.

To date, group-III-nitride has undergone continuous improvements to provide a broader range of industrial applications, such as solid-state lighting (SSL), visible light communications (VLC), and light projection. Recently, VLC has attained substantial attention in the field of wireless communication because it offers ~ 370 THz of bandwidth of unregulated visible spectrum, which makes it a critical factor in the evolution of the 5G networks and beyond. GaN-based light-emitting diode (LED) and laser diode (LD) have become increasingly appealing in energy-sufficient SSL replacing conventional light sources. However, III- nitride LEDs suffer from efficiency-droop in their external quantum efficiency associated with high current densities, and their modulation bandwidth is limited to 10 ~ 100 MHz. Although LDs have shown gigabit-modulation bandwidth, unfavorable artifacts, such as speckles are observed, which may raise a concern about eye safety. This dissertation is devoted to the fabrication and electrical and optical characterization of a new class of III-nitride light-emitter known as superluminescent diode (SLD). SLD works in an amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) regime, and it combines several advantages from both LD and LED, such as droop-free, speckle-free, low-spatial coherence, broader emission, high-optical power, and directional beam. Here, SLDs were fabricated by a focused ion beam by tilting the front facet of the waveguide to suppress the lasing mode. They showed a high-power of 474 mW on c-plane GaN-substrate with a large spectral bandwidth of 6.5 nm at an optical power of 105 mW. To generate SLD- based white light, a YAG-phosphor-plate was integrated, and a CRI of 85.1 and CCT of 3392 K were measured. For the VLC link, SLD showed record high-data rates of 1.45 Gbps and 3.4 Gbps by OOK and DMT modulation schemes, respectively. Additionally, a widely single- and dual-wavelength tunability were designed using SLD-based external cavity (SLD-EC) configuration for a tunable blue laser source. These results underscore the practicality of c-plane SLDs in realizing high-power, high data rate, speckle-free, and droop-free SSL-VLC apparatus. Additionally, the SLD-EC configuration allows a wide range of applications, including biomedical applications, optical communication, and high-resolution spectroscopy.

Bibliography: leaves 154-156.
156 leaves : ill. (some col.) ; 30 cm.
Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library.
This thesis describes the construction of a low-power end pumped Nd:YAG laser and the subsequent theoretical and experimental investigation of the antiphase dynamics exhibited by the laser. The end pumped laser was modelled by extending the classical model of Tang Statz deMars to non-uniform pump along the active medium. The anomalous threshold behaviour of the laser, where modes with lower gain can supass modes with higher gain as the pump power increases, was accounted for. The antiphase dynamics were explored by modulating the pump power and measuring the transfer functions from this input to various outputs. The laser's response to various sources of noise was also studied.
Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, School of Chemistry and Physics, Discipline of Physics and Mathematical Physics, 2003?

碩士
元智大學
光電工程學系
106
LED strip lighting can provide high quality uniform shadow-free diffuse lighting at low cost as numerous emission sources are controlled by a single transformer. Organic LEDs offer the additional advantages of UV free emission and, for visible light communication, picosecond fluorescent lifetimes allowing the whole visible spectrum to be used without filters. Using parameters determined experimentally for solid-state LED strip lighting and fluorescent lifetimes typical of organic phosphors as the input for a Monte Carlo based ray-tracing simulation, we evaluate the potential bandwidths obtainable for indoor communication. Our work suggests that raw data transfer rates of 4 to 10 Mbps are obtainable in a standard 5m by 5m by 3m room compatible with Internet of Things (IoT) applications.

This work presents a new wireless Visible Light Communication lighting system targeted to future Smart Buildings. A digitally controlled LLC resonant dc-dc converter targeted to white LED luminaires is demonstrated. Visible Light Communication is implemented with minimal incremental cost, by operating the LLC converter in burst mode, without causing any visible disturbance. The converter operates with a regulated average LED current by adjusting the switching frequency, while the burst pulse timing is controlled to minimize the current disturbance and minimize the value of the output capacitor. Variable Pulse Position Modulation is used to modulate the data, while supporting a range of dimming settings. A digital demodulation scheme that supports variable frequency transmission is demonstrated. The 80 W, 400 V to 23 V converter experimental prototype has a peak efficiency of 93.8 %. The bit error rate of the complete system is fully characterized versus distance and angle.

The past decade witnessed the rapid development of III-nitride light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and laser diodes (LDs), for smart lighting, visible-light communication (VLC), optical storage, and internet-of-things. Recent studies suggested that the GaN-based LDs, which is free from efficiency droop, outperform LEDs as a viable high-power light source. Conventionally, the InGaN-based LDs are grown on polar, c-plane GaN substrates. However, a relatively low differential gain limited the device performance due to a significant polarization field in the active region. Therefore, the LDs grown on nonpolar m-plane and semipolar (2021)-plane GaN substrates are posed to deliver high-efficiency owing to the entirely or partially eliminated polarization field. To date, the smart lighting and VLC functionalities have been demonstrated based on discrete devices, such as LDs, transverse-transmission modulators, and waveguide photodetectors. The integration of III-nitride photonic components, including the light emitter, modulator, absorber, amplifier, and photodetector, towards the realization of III-nitride photonic integrated circuit (PIC) offers the advantages of small-footprint, high-speed, and low power consumption, which has yet to be investigated. This dissertation presents the design, fabrication, and characterization of the multi-section InGaN laser diodes with integrated functionalities on semipolar (2021)-plane GaN substrates for enabling such photonic integration. The blue-emitting integrated waveguide modulator-laser diode (IWM-LD) exhibits a high modulation efficiency of 2.68 dB/V. A large extinction ratio of 11.3 dB is measured in the violet-emitting IWM-LD. Utilizing an integrated absorber, a high optical power (250mW), droop-free, speckle-free, and large modulation bandwidth (560MHz) blue-emitting superluminescent diode is reported. An integrated short-wavelength semiconductor optical amplifier with the laser diode at ~404 nm is demonstrated with a large gain of 5.32 dB at 6 V. A high-performance waveguide photodetector integrated LD at 405 nm sharing the single active region is presented, showing a significant large modulation bandwidth of 230 MHz. Thus these seamlessly integrated elements enable photonic IC at the visible wavelength for many important applications, such as smart lighting and display, optical communication, switching, clocking, and interconnect. The findings are therefore significant in developing an energy-saving platform technology that powers up human activities in a safe, health- and environmental-friendly manner.

The need for more efficient illumination systems has led to the proliferation of Solid-State Lighting (SSL) systems, which offer optimized power consumption. SSL systems are comprised of LED devices which are intrinsically fast devices and permit very fast light modulation. This, along with the congestion of the radio frequency spectrum has paved the path for the emergence of Visible Light Communication (VLC) systems. VLC uses free space to convey information by using light modulation. Notwithstanding, as VLC systems proliferate and cost competitiveness ensues, there are two important aspects to be considered. State-of-the-art VLC implementations use power demanding PAs, and thus it is important to investigate if regular, existent Switched-Mode Power Supply (SMPS) circuits can be adapted for VLC use. A 28 W buck regulator was implemented using a off-the-shelf LED Driver integrated circuit, using both series and parallel dimming techniques. Results show that optical clock frequencies up to 500 kHz are achievable without any major modification besides adequate component sizing. The use of an LED as a sensor was investigated, in a short-range, low-data-rate perspective. Results show successful communication in an LED-to-LED configuration, with enhanced range when using LED strings as sensors. Besides, LEDs present spectral selective sensitivity, which makes them good contenders for a multi-colour LED-to-LED system, such as in the use of RGB displays and lamps. Ultimately, the present work shows evidence that LEDs can be used as a dual-purpose device, enabling not only illumination, but also bi-directional data communication.

This dissertation presents the design, fabrication, and characterization of low-voltage capacitive RF MEMS switches. Although, RF MEMS switches have shown superior performance as compared to the existing solid-state semiconductor switches and are viable alternate to the present and the future communication systems, not been able to match the commercial standards due to their poor reliability. Dielectric charging due high actuation is one of the major concerns that limit the reliability of these switches. Hence, the focus of this thesis is on the development of low actuation voltage RF MEMS switches without compromising much on their RF and dynamic performances i.e., low insertion loss and high isolation. Four different switch topologies are studied and discussed. Electromechanical and electromagnetic modelling is presented to study the effect of various components that comprise a MEMS switch on the transient and the RF behaviour. The analytical expressions for switching and release times are established in order to estimate the switching and release times. An in-house developed surface micromachining process is adapted for the micro fabrication. This process eliminates the need for an extra mask used for the anchors and restricts the overall process to four-masks only. These switches are fabricated on 500 µm thick glass substrate. A 0.5 µm thick gold film is used as the structural material. For the final release of the switch, chemical wet etching technique is employed. The fabricated MEMS switches are characterized mechanically and electrically by measuring mechanical resonant frequency, quality factor, pull-in, and pull-up voltages. Since, low actuation voltage switches have slow response time. One of the key objectives of this thesis is to realize switches with fast response time at low actuation voltage. Measurements are performed to estimate the switching and release times. The measured Q-factors of switches are found to be in between 1.1 -1.4 which is the recommended value for Q in MEMS switches for a suppressed oscillation after the release. Furthermore, the effect of hole size on the switching dynamics is addressed. RF measurements are carried out to measure the S-parameters in order to quantify the RF performance. The measured results demonstrate that these switches need low actuation voltage in range of 4.5 V to 8.5 V for the actuation. The measured insertion loss less than -0.8 dB and isolation better than 30 dB up to 40 GHz is reported. In addition, the robustness of realized switches is tested using in-house developed Lab View-based automated measurement test set-up. The reliability test analysis shows no degradation in the RF performance even after 10 millions of switching cycles. Overall yield of 70 -80% is estimated in the present work. Finally, the experimentally measured results presented in this work prove the successful development of low actuation voltage capacitive RF MEMS switches and also offers that even with 0.5 µm thick gold film better reliability for MEMS switches can be achieved.

The research work reported in this thesis is focused on the chiral analysis, quantification of enantiomeric composition, assignment of absolute configuration of molecules with chosen functional groups. The weak intra-molecular hydrogen bonding interactions are detected by exploiting several multinuclear and multi-dimensional techniques. Pulse sequences have been designed to manipulate the spin dynamics to derive specific information from the complex NMR spectra encountered in diverse situations. Broadly, the thesis can be classified in to three sections. The section I containing two chapters reports the introduction of new chiral auxiliaries and protocols developed for enantiomeric discrimination, measurement of enantiomeric contents, assignment of absolute configuration for molecules possessing specific functional groups using chiral solvating and derivatizing agents. The section II, reports NMR experimental evidence for the observation of the rare type of intramolecular hydrogen bonds involving organic fluorine in biologically important organic molecules, that are corroborated by extensive DFT based theoretical calculations. The section II also discusses the H/D exchange mechanism as a tool for quantification of HB strengths in organic building blocks. The section III reports the two different novel NMR methodologies designed for deriving information on the scalar interaction strengths in an orchestrated manner. The designed sequences are able to completely eradicate the axial peaks, prevents the evolution of unwanted couplings and also yields ultrahigh resolution in the direct dimension, permitting the accurate measurement of scalar couplings for a particular spin. The brief summary about each chapter is given below. Chapter 1 provides a general introduction to one and two dimensional NMR spectroscopy. The pedagogical approach has been followed to discuss the conceptual understanding of spin physics and the NMR spectral parameters. The basic introduction to chirality, existing approaches in the literature for discrimination of enantiomers and the assignment of absolute configuration of molecules with chosen functional groups and their limitations are briefly discussed. The brief introduction to hydrogen bond, experimental methods to obtain the qualitative information about the strengths of hydrogen bonds, and the theoretical approaches employed in the thesis to corroborate the NMR experimental findings have been provided. The mechanism of H/D exchange, the utilization of exchange rates to derive strengths of intra-molecular hydrogen bond in small molecules have also been discussed. This chapter builds the bridge for the rest of the chapters. Each of these topics are discussed at length in the corresponding chapters. Part I: NMR Chiral Analysis: Novel Protocols Chapter 2 discusses a simple mix and shake method for testing the enantiopurity of primary, secondary and tertiary chiral amines and their derivatives, amino alcohols. The protocol involves the in-situ formation of chiral ammonium borate salt from a mixture of C2 symmetric chiral BINOL, trialkoxyborane and chiral amines. The proposed concept has been convincingly demonstrated for the visualization of enantiomers of a large number of chiral and pro-chiral amines and amino alcohols. The protocol also permits the precise measurement of enantiomeric composition. The significant advantage of the protocol is that it can be performed directly in the NMR tube, without any physical purification. The structure of the borate complex responsible for the enantiodifferentiation of amines has also been established by employing multinuclear NMR techniques and DFT calculations. From DOSY and 11B NMR experiments it has been ascertained that there are only two possible complexes or entities which are responsible for differentiating enantiomers. From the combined utility of DFT calculations and the 11B NMR chemical shifts, the structure of the borate complex has been determined to be an amine-coordinated complex with the N atom of the amine. Chapter 3 discusses a simple chiral derivatizing protocol involving the coupling of 2-formylphenylboronic acid and an optically pure [1,1-binaphthalene]-2,2-diamine for the rapid and accurate determination of the enantiopurity of hydroxy acids and their derivatives, possessing one or two optically active centers. It is established that this protocol is not only rapid method for discrimination of enantiomers but also highly effective for assigning the absolute configuration of various chiral hydroxy acids and their derivatives. The developed protocol involves the coupling of 2-formylphenylboronic acid with (R)-[1,1-binaphthalene]-2,2-diamine, and 2-formylphenylboronic acid with (S)-[1,1-binaphthalene]-2,2-diamine as chiral derivatizing agents. The absence of aliphatic peaks from the derivatizing agent, large chemical shift separation between the discriminated peaks of diastereomers, and the systematic change in the direction of displacement of peaks for an enantiomer in a particular diastereomeric complex, permitted the unambiguous assignment of absolute configuration. Part II : Rare Type of Intramolecular Hydrogen Bonding In chapter 4 The rare occurrence of intramolecular hydrogen bonds of the type N–H˖˖˖F–C, in the derivatives of imides and hydrazides in a low polarity solvent, is convincingly established by employing multi-dimensional and multinuclear solution state NMR experiments. The observation of 1hJFH, 2hJFN, and 2hJFF of significant strengths, where the spin polarization is transmitted through space among the interacting NMR active nuclei, provided strong and conclusive evidence for the existence of intra-molecular hydrogen bonds. Solvent induced perturbations and the variable temperature NMR experiments unambiguously supported the presence of intramolecular hydrogen bond. The two dimensional HOESY and 15N–1H HSQC experiments reveals the existence of multiple conformers in some of the investigated molecules. The 1H DOSY experimental results discarded any possibility of self or cross-dimerization of the molecules. The results of DFT based calculations, viz., Quantum Theory of Atoms In Molecules (QTAIM) and Non Covalent Interaction (NCI), are in close agreement with the NMR experimental findings. In chapter 5 the rates of hydrogen/deuterium (H/D) exchange determined by 1H NMR spectra have been utilized to derive the strength of hydrogen bonds and to monitor the electronic effects in the site-specific halogen substituted benzamides and anilines. The theoretical fitting of the time dependent variation in the integral areas of 1H NMR resonances to the first order decay function permitted the determination of H/D exchange rate constants (k) and their precise half-lives (t1/2) with high degree of reproducibility. The comparative study also permitted the determination of relative strengths of hydrogen bonds and the contribution from electronic effects on the H/D exchange rates. Part III: Novel NMR Methodologies for the Precise Measurement of 1H-1H Couplings Chapter 6 describes two novel NMR methodologies developed for the precise measurement of 1H-1H couplings. Poor chemical shift dispersion and the pairwise interaction among the entire coupled network of protons results in the severely complex and overcrowded one dimensional 1H NMR spectra, hampering both the resonance assignments and the accurate determination of nJHH. The available two-dimensional selective refocusing (SERF) based experiments suffer from the evolution of magnetization from uncoupled protons as intense uninformative axial peaks. This creates ambiguity in the identification of peaks belonging to the coupled partners of a selectively excited proton, hindering the extraction of their interaction strengths. This challenge has been circumvented by designing two novel experimental technique, cited as “Clean-G-SERF” and “PS-Clean-G-SERF”. The Clean-G-SERF technique completely eradicates the axial peaks and suppresses the evolution of unwanted couplings while retaining only the couplings to the selectively excited proton. The method permits the accurate determination of spin-spin couplings even from a complex proton NMR spectrum in an orchestrated manner. The PS-Clean-G-SERF technique has been designed for the complete elimination of axial peaks and undesired couplings, with a blend of ultra-high resolution achieved by real time broad band homonuclear decoupling has been discussed in this chapter. The spin dynamics involved in both these pulse sequences have been discussed. The diverse applications of both these novel experiments have been demonstrated.