Engineering Commons^™

Visual Feedback On The Effects Of Temperature, Moisture, Relative Humidity, Solar Radiation, Wind And Precipitation On Growth And Production Of Grapes., Justus Karenzi, Calvin Yau, Sunghan Ko, David Ebert

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Weather conditions such as Temperature, Relative Humidity, Solar Radiation, and wind have reportedly been the primary cause to the significant difference in the growth of grape vines across the world. Past research findings have clearly studied the underlying effects of these weather parameters on the growth of grapes, but minimum work has been done on how to accurately turn this data into useful information. This paper aims at providing an overview on how to manage, analyze, and finally visualize the weather data in a way that is convenient to the farmers and can therefore help in the growth of grapes. …

Model-Free Method Of Reinforcement Learning For Visual Tasks, Jeff S. Soldate, Jonghoon Jin, Eugenio Culurciello

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

There has been success in recent years for neural networks in applications requiring high level intelligence such as categorization and assessment. In this work, we present a neural network model to learn control policies using reinforcement learning. It takes a raw pixel representation of the current state and outputs an approximation of a Q value function made with a neural network that represents the expected reward for each possible state-action pair. The action is chosen an \epsilon-greedy policy, choosing the highest expected reward with a small chance of random action. We used gradient descent to update the weights and biases …

Polymer-Based Thermoelectric Devices, Stuart W. Hilsmier, Edward P. Tomlinson, Bryan Boudouris

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Currently, over 50% of all energy generated in the US is lost as waste heat, and thermoelectric generators offer a promising means to recoup some of this energy, if their efficiency is improved. While organic thermoelectric materials lack the efficiency of their inorganic counterparts, they are composed of highly abundant resources and have low temperature processing conditions. Recently, a new class of redox-active polymers, radical polymers, has exhibited high electrical conductivity in an entirely amorphous medium. In addition, these radical polymers have a simple synthetic scheme and can be highly tunable to provide desired electrical properties. In this study, the …

Multi-Channel Analysis For Gradient Artifact Removal From Concurrent Eeg-Fmri Studies, Miguel R. Castellanos, Zhongming Liu

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Concurrent electroencephalogram (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) recordings are susceptible to large amounts of noise due to the static and dynamic magnetic fields present inside the MR scanner. EEG-fMRI studies are conducted to provide better spatial and temporal resolution for each recording, respectively, but the artifacts found in the EEG render the data impossible to interpret. Past studies have focused on signal post-processing techniques which are able to effectively remove noise upon the completion of a study, but there are no techniques able to process the data in real-time without extensive calibration. This research addresses this issue by …

Solar-Combined Thermoelectric Power Generation Simulator, Hemanth Mullangi Chenchu, Kazuaki Yazawa, Je-Hyeong Bahk

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Photovoltaic (PV) devices are gaining popularity in harnessing solar energy as a form of sustainable energy source to generate electricity. However, these devices including tandem PV cells are limited to utilizing only high energy photons from the solar spectrum. This curtails their efficiency restricting them from being employed in mega Watts scale power generation. This study develops a software tool that allows engineers to tap into the wasted wavelengths of the spectrum by adding a thermoelectric (TE) module and a bottoming steam turbine cycle thus spreading the use of the spectrum. The tool allows investigating how power output and thus …

Development Of A Nanomanufacturing Process To Produce Atomically Thin Black Phosphorus, Andrew Stephens, Zhe Luo, Xianfan Xu

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Atomically thin black phosphorus (phosphorene) has both unique and desirable properties that differ from bulk black phosphorus. Unlike graphene, phosphorene has a bandgap, which makes it potentially useful for applications in the next generation of transistors. Large-scale applications of phosphorene, like other 2D materials, are limited by current production methods. The most common method of making phosphorene is mechanical exfoliation, which can only produce small and irregular quantities. In this work we investigate a top-down method of producing phosphorene by using a scanning ultrafast laser to thin black phosphorus flakes. Because the bandgap of phosphorene increases as layers are removed, …

Simulation Of Plasmonic Waveguides Based On Long-Range Surface Plasmon Polaritons, Yugang Jing, Alexandra Boltasseva, Nathaniel Kinsey

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

The demand for faster and smaller computing devices is growing larger and larger. In the recent decade, research has proven that plasmonic devices have exciting characteristics and performance for next generation on‑chip structures. However, most of these devices contain noble metals and are not CMOS compatible. This work numerically investigates the performance of plasmonic waveguide designs made of TiN, a CMOS compatible material with optical properties similar to gold. Through our work, we demonstrate that TiN nanophotonic devices can be useful for inter-chip connections. A series of simulations using COMSOL Multiphysics were performed to test the performance of these structures. …

Energy Measurement Of Spdy Protocol On Mobile Platform, Zisheng Liao, Ashiwan Sivakumar, Sanjay Rao

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

The past few years have witnessed an explosive growth in mobile Internet data traffic with web browsing being one of the key activities on mobile devices. There is tremendous interest in optimizing mobile web. In this regard, a new protocol called SPDY was introduced by Google to augment web browsing, however it's impact on the device energy consumption is not clearly understood. In this work we evaluate the energy characteristics of SPDY-based web browsing on mobile devices. In order to measure the energy consumption of web activities, we use AT&T’s ARO [1]. This tool is widely accepted and used by …

1d Phonon Bte Solver (Small Scale Heat Transport Simulation), Joseph A. Sudibyo, Amr Mohammed, Ali Shakouri

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

In current technology, electronic devices shrink to the size of nanometers. The ability to accurately model heat transport to understand the thermal behavior of these small electronic devices becomes increasingly important. Since heat transport is very difficult to measure directly in small electronic devices, simulation becomes an effective means to model heat transport. A user-interactive simulation tool is created to model heat transport in small electronic devices of different lengths. Heat transport is modeled by solving one-dimensional Boltzmann transport equation (BTE) to obtain the transient temperature profile of a multi-length and multi-timescale thin film under constant temperature boundary condition or …

Modeling Thermophotovoltaic Rare Earth Based Selective Emitters, Anubha Mathur, Enas Said Sakr, Peter Bermel

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Thermophotovoltaic (TPV) devices convert heat to electricity using thermal radiation to illuminate a photovoltaic (PV) diode. Typically, this radiation is generated by a blackbody-like emitter. Such an emission spectrum includes a broad range of wavelengths, but only higher energy photons can be converted by the PV diode, which severely limits efficiencies. Thus, introducing a selective emitter and filter to recycle unwanted photons could potentially greatly enhance performance. In this work, we consider a rare earth-doped selective emitter structure to increase the number of photons emitted above the bandgap of the photovoltaic (PV) cell, while minimizing the total power emitted below …

Simulating Nanoscale Optics In Photovoltaics With The S-Matrix Method, Dalton Chaffee, Xufeng Wang, Peter Bermel

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

In the push to build high-efficiency solar cells with less materials usage, thin-film solar cells have attracted an increasing amount of interest. Thin films are particularly attractive if they could exhibit light trapping and photon recycling capabilities exceeding those of traditional wafer-based cells. Recent work by Alta Devices demonstrating a record single-junction efficiency of 28.8% with a gallium arsenide thin film cell shows the potential. However, most existing simulation tools do not handle these properties well -- particularly photon recycling. In this work, we develop an improved solar cell simulation tool to accurately predict thin-film performance. It is based on …

Building Predictive Chemistry Models, Christopher Browne, Nicolas Onofrio, Alejandro Strachan

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Density Functional Theory (DFT) simulations allow for sophisticated modeling of chemical interactions, but the extreme computational cost makes it inviable for large scale applications. Molecular dynamics models, specifically ReaxFF, can model much larger simulations with greater speed, but with lesser accuracy. The accuracy of ReaxFF can be improved by comparing predictions of both methods and tuning ReaxFF’s parameters. Molecular capabilities of ReaxFF were gauged by simulating copper complexes in water over a 200 ps range, and comparing energy predictions against ReaxFF. To gauge solid state capabilities, volumetric strain was applied to simulated copper bulk and the strain response functions used …

Radical Polymers As Anodic Charge Extraction Layers In Small Molecule Organic Photovoltaic Devices, Krystopher S. Jochem, Aditya G. Baradwaj, Bryan W. Boudouris

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices based on the copper (II) phthalocyanine(CuPc)/ fullerene(C₆₀) system are an innovative photovoltaic technology optimal for situations requiring low-cost, transparent, and flexible devices. Furthermore, the high degree of reproducibility of this system allows for the ready study of new OPV technologies. Here, we have used this system to elucidate systematic structure-property-performance relationships for a new OPV anode modifier. The addition of interfacial modifier materials between the organic CuPc/C₆₀ layers and the metallic anode drastically can improve efficiency. Radical polymers are a class of polymers with aliphatic backbones and pendent stabilized radical groups. Here, we …

Continuous Analysis Of Many Internet Connected Cameras, Seth Bontrager, Ahmed Kaseb, Yung-Hsiang Lu

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

There are many Internet connected cameras from all over the world containing a lot of useful information that goes undiscovered. Traffic cameras could monitor the amount of congestion on the highway. Outdoor cameras could monitor weather conditions and help develop more accurate weather models. Currently there is no common system that brings this camera data and a way to analyze it together. The goal of CAM² is to create a system that lets users easily access this camera data and perform large-scale analysis on it to extract useful information. The structure of the system includes (i) a website that …

Developing Compact Models For Passive Devices On Ibm 45nm Cmos Soi Technology, Yufei Feng, Yanfei Shen, Saeed Mohammadi

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

The standard IBM 45 nm technology is widely adopted for industrial and academic purpose by integrates circuit designers. Original models provided by foundry are not accurate, which might cause inaccuracy in circuit simulations. Equivalent circuit models, using RLC elements to simulate electrical component, will effectively deliver their electrical performance. This study consists of four steps to construct these models. First, Cadence Virtuoso, the commercial circuit design software was used to run simulations and extract data for different device parameters. Second, analyzing tools, like Microsoft Excel or Matlab, are used to analyze the extracted data. Then, equations are written for each …

Improved Microrobotic Control Through Image Processing And Automated Hardware Interfacing, Archit R. Aggarwal, Wuming Jing, David J. Cappelleri

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Untethered submilliliter-sized robots (microrobots) are showing potential use in different industrial, manufacturing and medical applications. A particular type of these microrobots, magnetic robots, have shown improved performance in power and control capabilities compared to the other thermal and electrostatic based robots. However, the magnetic robot designs have not been assessed in a robust manner to understand the degree of control in different environments and their application feasibility. This research project seeks to develop a custom control software interface to provide a holistic tool for researchers to evaluate the microrobotic performance through advance control features. The software deliverable involved two main …

Medical Applications Of Mrc, Kyle Thackston, Henry Mei, Pedro Irazoqui

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Consistent powering is a limiting reagent for many medical implants and sensors. Powering in-vivo devices in animal studies requires either transcutaneous wiring (limiting mobility and increasing the chance of infection) or an implanted battery (limited lifetime and limits size of device). Wireless power transfer (WPT) would be able to overcome these challenges and permit the use of more advanced implantable devices in a research setting. Magnetic resonance coupling (MRC), an advanced form of inductive charging, allows good transfer efficiencies over significant air gaps, but works best a specific location and frequency, limiting mobility in animal studies. Using band-pass filter theory, …

Agent-Based Control Of A Flapping Wing Micro Aerial Vehicle, Michal Podhradský

Student Research Symposium

Flapping wing micro aerial vehicles (FWMAVs) are biomimetic vehicles, because they imitate insects in the way they fly. FWMAVs are very small and highly manoeuvrable and can be used in reconnaissance, environmental monitoring, search & rescue, and other applications. The goal of the project is to develop & verify an agent based flight controller for FWMAV that can adapt to different flight conditions, actuator failures, and different vehicles while delivering constant performance. Agent based control was successfully applied in industry and distributed applications, but to our best knowledge never in an actual flying vehicle. Agent based control utilizes machine learning, …

The Smart Clock, Cory Koehler, Addison Loda, Hannah Posey-Scholl, Isak Rask

PSU High School Innovation Challenge

Modern technology continues to change and improve constantly as people find ways to make things faster, smaller, and better - but these changes often leave the elderly behind. This year’s Innovation Challenge asked groups to focus on how to create and improve technology geared towards the aging generations. For our initial research, the Grant High School team and mentors visited an elderly care center and interviewed a few of the residents, asking what types of technology currently improve their lives, and what types of technology could potentially improve their lives.

The Problem: After the interviews, we were able to identify …

Applying Spiking Neural Network Simulation To Neuromodulatory Autonomous Robot Control, Cameron Muhammad

Phi Kappa Phi Research Symposium (2012-2016)

In this paper, simulation of the brain based on an artificial spiking neuron model is used to create a self-learning algorithm. The spiking neuron simulation is used to demonstrate a neuromodulation program in which the reward seeking properties of dopamine, the risk-adverse effects of serotonin, and the attention-focusing effects of the cholinergic and noradrenergic systems are applied to a mobile robotic platform as it moves autonomously throughout an environment. External stimuli is recorded by the program as spiking “events” that result in corresponding amounts of dopamine and serotonin influenced spiking patterns. These spiking patterns affect how the robot adapts to …