Engineering Commons^™

Applications Of Object Database Technology In Thermodynamics And Materials Science, R Venkatesh, David Hansen, David Maier, James T. Stanley Ii

Faculty Publications - Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

Over the last few decades there has been a continual development of computer programs and databases directed at storage and manipulation of scientific data. The data these programs manipulate are typically kept in a proprietary format with little thought given to portability, upgrading or interfacing with other software. Hence, there is an inability to share data across programs of between data sources. We believe that many of the difficulties with sharing scientific data and building on previous computational efforts result from the incompatibility of programs and data in the scientific domain. We are involved in exploring an alternative data management …

Gravity And Electromagnetism In Noncommutative Geometry, Giovanni Landi, Nguyen Ai Viet, Kameshwar C. Wali

Physics - All Scholarship

We present a unified description of gravity and electromagnetism in the framework of a Z 2 non-commutative differential calculus. It can be considered as a “discrete version” of Kaluza-Klein theory, where the fifth continuous dimension is replaced by two discrete points. We derive an action which coincides with the dimensionally reduced one of the ordinary Kaluza-Klein theory.

Journal Of Engineering Education Round Table: Reflections On The Grinter Report, James G. Harris, Eugene M. Deloatch, William R. Grogan, Irene C. Peden, John R. Whinnery

Electrical Engineering

The Round Table is a new presentation format for the Journal of Engineering Education. The purpose of the Round Table is to present the comments of several distinguished individuals about a topic as well as their responses to the comments offered by their colleagues. For the initial Journal of Engineering Education Round Table we asked for reflections about the Grinter Report, published in September 1955.

After a brief introduction to the topic of discussion, the invited participants present their views, and, then, respond to the remarks of their colleagues. The goal is two-fold: to present a spectrum of views on …

Field Measurements Of Natural And Artificial Targets Using A Mid-Infrared Laser Reflectance Sensor, Ram M. Narayanan, Steven E. Green

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

tunable mid-infrared CO₂ laser reflectance sensor operating in the 9-11 pm wavelength range has been developed and field-tested at the University of Nebraska. This system is capable of gathering reflectance data at various wavelengths, incidence angles and linear polarization combinations. Preliminary measurements of various natural and artificial targets such as soil, coniferous and deciduous trees, concrete and brick building material at distances of up to 100 m demonstrate the potential of this system to characterize the mid-infrared reflectance of terrain features for remote sensing applications. Field-acquired data compare well with data on similar materials measured in the laboratory under …

Computation Of Stable Invariant Subspaces Of Hamiltonian Matrices, R. V. Patel, Z. Lin, Pradeep Misra

Electrical Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper addresses some numerical issues that arise in computing a basis for the stable invariant subspace of a Hamiltonian matrix. Such a basis is required in solving the algebraic Riccati equation using the well-known method due to Laub. Two algorithms based on certain properties of Hamiltonian matrices are proposed as viable alternatives to the conventional approach.

Comparison Of Self Pulsation In Multisection Lasers With Distributed Feedback And Intracavity Satuarable Absorbers, P. Phelan, D. Mcdonald, A. Egan, Joe Hegarty, R. O'Dowd, Gerald Farrell, S. Lingren

Articles

The authors report a comparison of the self-pulsing characteristics of two types of semiconductor laser. They show that the self-pulsing frequency of the DFB laser is decoupled from the resonance frequency. They discuss the various characteristics, their significance in relation to optical synchronisation, and use the results to suggest a possible explanation for the mechanism for self-pulsation in the DFB laser.

Block Qpsk Modulation Codes With Two Levels Of Error Protection, Robert H. Morelos-Zaragoza, Shu Lin

Faculty Publications

A class of block QPSK modulation codes for unequal error protection (UEP) is presented. These codes are particularly suitable either for broadcast channels or for communication systems where parts of the information messages are more important than others. An example of the latter is coded speech transmission. Not much is known on the application of block UEP codes in combined coding and modulation schemes. We exhibit a method to combine binary linear UEP (LUEP) block codes of even length, using a Gray mapping, with a QPSK signal set to construct efficient block QPSK modulation codes with nonuniform error protection capabilities …

On A Class Of Optimal Nonbinary Linear Unequal-Error-Protection Codes For Two Sets Of Messages, Robert H. Morelos-Zaragoza, Shu Lin

Faculty Publications

Several authors have addressed the problem of designing good linear unequal error protection (LUEP) codes. However, very little is known about good nonbinary LUEP codes. We present a class of optimal nonbinary LUEP codes for two different sets of messages. By combining t-error-correcting ReedSolomon (RS) codes and shortened nonbinary Hamming codes, we obtain nonbinary LUEP codes that protect one set of messages against any t or fewer symbol errors and the remaining set of messages against any single symbol error. For t ≥ 2, we show that these codes are optimal in the sense of achieving the Hamming lower bound …

Scheduling Of Unstructured Communication On The Intel Ipsc/860, Jhy-Chun Wang, Sanjay Ranka

College of Engineering and Computer Science - Former Departments, Centers, Institutes and Projects

In this paper we present several algorithms for decomposing all-to-many personalized communication into a set of disjoint partial permutations. These partial permutations avoid node contention as well as link contention. We discuss the theoretical complexity of these algorithms and study their effectiveness both from the view of static scheduling and from runtime scheduling. Experimental results for our algorithms are presented on the iPSC/860.

Field Tests Of The Dolphin--A Remotely Operated Survey Vehicle, M T. Kalcic, Edit J. Kaminsky

Electrical Engineering Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Effective Bandgap Shrinkage In Gaas, E. S. Harmon, Michael R. Melloch, Mark S. Lundstrom

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Electrical measurements of the equilibrium np product (n2ie) in heavily doped n‐ and p‐GaAs were performed. The n2ieDproduct (where D is the diffusivity) was measured by fitting the collector current‐voltage characteristic of a homojunction bipolar transistor to an ideal diode equation modified to account for transport in thin base transistors.The n2ie product was then extracted from n2ieD by utilizing diffusivity results obtained with the zero‐field time‐of‐flight technique. Our results show significant effective band‐gap shrinkage in heavily doped p‐GaAs, and very little effective band‐gap shrinkage …

Thermal Velocity Limits To Diffusive Electron Transport In Thin‐Base Np+N Gaas Bipolar Transistors, E. S. Harmon, Michael R. Melloch, Mark S. Lundstrom, F. Cardone

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

We present experimental evidence that minority electron transport across a thin, quasineutral p+ GaAs region is limited by the thermal velocity of the electrons rather than by conventional diffusive transport. A set of GaAs homojunction np+n transistors with base widths of 4000, 2000, 1000, and 500 Å was fabricated and characterized. The diffusive modelpredicts that the dc collector current of the 500‐Å base width transistors should be eight times larger than the collector current of transistors with a 4000‐Å‐wide base. The experimental results, however, show only a factor of ~3.5 increase in collector current. The measured collector …

A Study Of Dc Permanent Magnet Motor Noise Related To Line Current, Candace Rogers Suriano

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Technical Reports

Lightweight, compact and inexpensive DC permanent magnet motors are well suited for low cost high production use in industry. Unfortunately, the audible noise emanating from these motors can cause a false negative perception of the motor's quality. In cars, for example, fan motor noise can be a nuisance. The objective of this thesis is to examine the connection between motor noise and the line current wave form for a specific four pole DC permanent magnet motor. It is further concerned with identifying the underlying factors which influence the line current ripple. An audible noise to motor current transfer function is …

Numerical Modeling Of Cuinse2 An D Cdte Solar Cells, Jeffery L. Gray, Richard. J. Schwartz, Youn Jung Lee

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Technical Reports

No abstract provided.

Model Parameter And Time Delay Estimation Using Gradient Methods, Aidan O'Dwyer, John Ringwood

Conference papers

A number of approaches have been proposed for parameter and time delay estimation of process models in single input, single output (SISO) control systems using gradient descent algorithms; some of these approaches involve the selection of a rational polynomial that is used to approximate time delay variations. This paper takes a generalised approach to the investigation of the most appropriate choice of the rational polynomial, and the gradient descent algorithm, to be used.

Impact Of Field-Dependent Electronic Trapping Across Coulomb Repulsive Potentials On Low Frequency Charge Oscillations, R. P. Joshi, K. H. Schoenbach, P. K. Raha

Bioelectrics Publications

We have performed Monte Carlo simulations to obtain the field dependence of electronic trapping across repulsive potentials in GaAs. Such repulsive centers are associated with deep level impurities having multiply charged states. Our results reveal a field‐dependent maxima in the electronic capture coefficient, and the overall shape is seen to depend on the background electron density due to the effects of screening. Based on the Monte Carlo calculations, we have examined the stability of compensated semiconductors containing such repulsive centers. Our analysis indicates a potential for low frequency charge oscillations which is in keeping with available experimental data.

On Fault Modeling And Testing Of Content-Addressable Memories, Waleed K. Al-Assadi, A. P. Jayasumana, Y. K. Malaiya

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Associative or content addressable memories can be used for many computing applications. This paper discusses fault modeling for the content addressable memory (CAM) chips. Detailed examination of a single CAM cell is presented. A functional fault model for a CAM architecture executing exact match derived from the single cell model is presented. An efficient testing strategy can be derived using the proposed fault model

Neural Network Enhancement Of The Los Alamos Force Deployment Estimator, Bobby Turner, Donald C. Wunsch

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The Force Deployment Estimator (FDE) is a decision support system. It allocates transportation resources given inputs such as forces to be deployed and their desired arrival times. Other inputs are assumptions about conditions that affect performance: carrier start time, node capacity, sustainment shipping time, bulk sustainment per day, ammo sustainment per day, unit start time, carrier service time, carrier round trip time, and carrier reassignment time. Outputs include the mean and standard deviation of estimated unit arrival times versus goal times, and data files for post-processing. However, when a goal time is not met, the simulator gives no explanation of …

A Frequency Domain Based Self-Tuning Pid Controller, John Ringwood, Aidan O'Dwyer

Conference papers

Traditionally, both explicit and implicit self-tuning controllers have employed time domain techniques for the identification and tracking of plant and controller parameters. The use of the frequency domain provides concise information on the dynamics of the process which has led to its wide acceptance as a domain for controller design. This paper demonstrates a method employing recursive, on-line measurement of the process frequency response, with a straightforward calculation of PID controller parameters. The computational effort involved is comparable with that of a time domain technique.

The Role Of Component Packaging In System Electromagnetic Compatibility, Todd H. Hubing

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Increases in the speed and density of electronic systems do not necessarily result in tougher electromagnetic compatibility problems. In fact, recent advances in packaging technology can help designers to meet electromagnetic compatibility requirements. However, working with new technologies requires us to re-evaluate existing EMC design models and guidelines. Understanding the system-level impact of component-level packaging changes, is a prerequisite for meeting stringent electromagnetic compatibility requirements in a timely and cost-effective manner.

Voltage Collapse. An Engineering Challenge, Mariesa Crow, Bernard C. Lesieutre

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Voltage collapse is characterised by a loss of control of the voltage levels in a power system. Although all of the precise mechanisms that affect voltage collapse have not yet been identified, voltage instabilities are known to occur when the power system is operating under a stressed state. The authors discuss voltage collapse and its relationship with the point of maximum power transfer and how voltage collapse can be better predicted

Neural Network Diagnosis Of Malignant Melanoma From Color Images, Fikret Erçal, Hsi-Chieh Lee, William V. Stoecker, Randy Hays Moss, Anurag Chawla

Computer Science Faculty Research & Creative Works

Malignant melanoma is the deadliest form of all skin cancers. Approximately 32,000 new cases of malignant melanoma were diagnosed in 1991 in the United States, with approximately 80% of patients expected to survive 5 years. Fortunately, if detected early, even malignant melanoma may be treated successfully, Thus, in recent years, there has been rising interest in the automated detection and diagnosis of skin cancer, particularly malignant melanoma. Here, the authors present a novel neural network approach for the automated separation of melanoma from 3 benign categories of tumors which exhibit melanoma-like characteristics. The approach uses discriminant features, based on tumor …

Immittance Spectroscopy Of Smart Components And Novel Devices, Mohammad Anwarul Alim, Sanjida Khanam, Martin A. Seitz

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

AC small-signal immittance spectroscopy is employed as a viable tool to demonstrate electrical characterization, performance improvement, and quality assurance issues of smart materials-based components and novel devices. The variation in the ac response, complemented via dc measurements within a range of tolerating temperature, delineates competing phenomena occurring in the microstructures of these engineering material systems. The results are presented in a generic manner with possible explanations on the mechanisms for two selected Debye-like (nearly ideal) and non-Debye (non-ideal) low-capacitance resistors. This spectroscopic approach allows systematic development of a representative equivalent circuit, considered to be the characteristic of the devices and …

A Stochastic One-Dimensional Image Model Based On Occluding Object Images, John A. Stuller

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This Paper Provides New Insights into the Formation of One-Dimensional (Line-Scan) Image Autocorrelation Functions. We Model a Line Scan as a Composition of Individual Object-Images that Have Random Positions, Widths and Intensities and that Occlude One Another. We Derive the Autocorrelation Function of This Model as a Function of Object-Image Width and Intensity Distributions. We Show that Any Assumption Regarding the Form of the Autocorrelation Function Places a Constraint on Object-Image Width and Intensity Distributions and We Derive the Object-Image Width Distribution Associated with the Widely Used Symmetric-Exponential Autocovariance Model.

Order-Recursive Fir Smoothers, Jenq Tay Yuan, John A. Stuller

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This Paper Introduces Order-Recursive FIR Smoothers and Shows that Order-Recursive FIR Filters Are Special Forms that Occur When No Future Data Values Are Used to Estimate the Signal. the Formulation Leads Naturally to Generalizations of the Concepts of Prediction-Error Basis and Cholesky Factorization Which Are Well Known in FIR Filter Design. © 1994 IEEE

Optimal Control Of Infinite-Order Smart Composite Structural Systems Using Distributed Sensors, Robert Butler, Vittal S. Rao

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In recent years there has been considerable interest in the design of spatially shaped distributed sensors for the control of infinite-order structural systems. The smart materials polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and shape-memory alloys can be utilized in the development of customized distributed sensors. Sensor shape-optimization techniques are needed for the implementation of optimal control strategies. In this paper, a method for generating the shapes of distributed sensors using finite-dimensional approximations to desired curvature and curvature rate kernels is examined. The output of these spatially distributed sensors is utilized directly as the control signal for suppressing vibrations in infinite-order structural systems. This …

The Adaptive Control Of Smart Structures Using Neural Networks, Vittal Rao, Rajendra Damle, Chris Tebbe, Frank J. Kern

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The application of adaptive control algorithms for vibration suppression of smart structures is investigated in this paper. An accurate mathematical representation is not required in this approach. The controller adapts to the parameter variations of the structural system by updating the controller gains. When the desired performance of an unknown plant with respect to an input signal can be specified in the form of a linear or a non-linear differential equation, stable control can be achieved using model-reference adaptive control (MRAC) techniques. The conventional MRAC techniques have been successfully implemented on a smart-structure test article resulting in perfect model following. …

Threshold Characteristics Of Multimode Semiconductor Lasers, Lee W. Casperson, Mehdi Khoshnevissan

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The effects of spontaneous emission on the threshold characteristics of multimode laser oscillators with mixed line broadening are considered in detail. Most previous studies of multimode laser operation have emphasized the two limits of homogeneous and inhomogeneous broadening. With homogeneous broadening there is a tendency for oscillation in a single longitudinal mode, while in the inhomogeneous limit oscillation over much of the gain spectrum is expected. All practical lasers are somewhere between these limits, and this study explores the mode characteristics of lasers with mixed line broadening. Special attention is given to the important practical case of semiconductor diode lasers, …

Data-Feedthrough Faults In Circuits Using Unclocked Storage Elements, Waleed K. Al-Assadi, D. Lu, A. P. Jayasumana, Y. K. Malaiya, C. Q. Tong

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Some faults in storage elements (SEs) do not manifest as stuck-at-0/1 faults. These include data-feedthrough faults that cause the SE cell to exhibit combinational behaviour. The authors investigate the implications of such faults on the behaviour of circuits using unclocked SEs. It is shown that effects of data-feedthrough faults at the behavioural level are different from those due to stuck-at faults, and therefore tests generated for the latter may be inadequate

Microwave Diagnosis Of Rubber Compounds, Stoyan I. Ganchev, J. Bhattacharyya, Sasan Bakhtiari, Nasser N. Qaddoumi, Deborah Brandenburg, R. Zoughi

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The results of a study investigating the dielectric properties of rubber compounds and their constituents in the frequency range of 5 to 24 GHz are presented. A completely filled short circuited waveguide technique was used to conduct these dielectric measurements. The influence of carbon black content in rubber was investigated for carefully prepared rubber samples. The results showed that for all frequencies, the dielectric constant increases as a function of increasing carbon black content. The variation of dielectric constant values decreases as frequency increases. The presence of curatives in uncured rubber samples was also detected, which indicates the sensitivity of …