Array Of Applications Research Articles

Self-focusing morphology of juxtaposed double-ring Airyprime-Gaussian beam arrays

In this paper, the variation of self-focusing morphology and focusing interval of a juxtaposed double-ring Airyprime-Gaussian beam array (JDAPGBA) is investigated by changing the proportionality coefficient between the transverse displacements of the outer and the inner rings β. When β increases within a certain range, the JDAPGBA will change from a single self-focusing to the first self-focusing from the inner ring and the second self-focusing from the outer ring, accompanied by the gradual increase of the focusing interval. As β increases, the self-focusing ability of the inner ring is initially weaker than that of the outer ring, and then the self-focusing ability of the inner ring increases. In contrast, the self-focusing ability of the outer ring weakens until the two self-focusing skills are equal to each other. The generation of the double self-focusings of the JDAPGBA is explained in terms of the physical mechanism. In addition, the effects of the transverse displacement of the inner ring din and the distribution factor g on the focusing interval of the JDAPGBA are analyzed in detail. If din increases, the focusing interval also increases, both self-focusing abilities enhance, and the modulation range of β decreases as well. If the distribution factor g increases, the focusing interval rises, both self-focusing abilities weaken, the modulation range of β increases as well. Finally, the correctness of the above conclusions is confirmed by the experimental measurements of the self-focusing properties of the JDAPGBA. The above research provides a new scheme on how to generate double self-focusings and freely change the focusing interval, as well as new insights into the practical application of juxtaposed double-ring self-focusing beam arrays.

Nanofiber array growth mechanism based on dealloying of Ti-Cu/Cu multilayer precursor film

Metal oxide nanofiber array materials are a type of material with outstanding performance and application potential. Recently, an efficient dealloying method using Ti–Cu/Cu multilayer film as a precursor was proposed to prepare titanium oxide nanofiber array structure. However, the growth mechanism and formation process of such an oxide nanofiber array grown on multilayer-film is not clear. In this work, we use Ti-Cu/Cu multilayer film as the precursor, NaOH solution as the dealloying corrosion solution, and free dealloying at room temperature. On the basis of successfully obtaining TiO2 nanofiber array films, the morphology formation and evolution process of the nanoarray were carefully monitored, and the atomic percentage changes of Ti, Cu and O elements in the dealloying precursor films were tested, as well as the formation and crystalline phase evolution trends of TiO2. Based on the experimental data, we tried to draw a schematic diagram of the formation process of this TiO2 nanofiber array, and proposed that the growth mechanism of the TiO2 nanofiber array is the precipitation growth process both with Ostwald Ripening and Oriented Attachment mechanisms. Then, the photocurrent response characteristics of the obtained nanofiber array structure samples were analyzed, and it was found that the nanofiber array structure had a certain effect on the photocurrent response performance. The completion of the present work is expected to provide a theoretical reference for the preparation and application of other metal oxide nanofiber array by dealloying method.

Integrating reliability analysis into MBSE for FPGA-based safety critical I&C system design in nuclear power plants

Abstract With the widespread application of Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) technology in the instrumentation and control (I&C) systems of nuclear power plants (NPPs), its design reliability has become the key to ensuring the subsequent safe operation of NPPs. However, the traditional document-based design method is no longer sufficient to meet the current design needs of complex systems, and there is a lack of research related to the reliability and security analysis of FPGA-based systems. Therefore, the overall goal of this study is to integrate reliability analysis into the model-based systems engineering (MBSE)-based design of FPGA-based I&C systems. Based on the typical application characteristics of the FPGA, a digital design framework for FPGA-based systems is proposed to realize a traceable design process from requirements to implementation. Subsequently, a model-based forward comprehensive reliability analysis method is proposed, which uses a SysML-based mapping mechanism to integrate Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) and Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) methods into the design process, so as to comprehensively identify and analyze failure modes from systems to components and optimize and improve system design. Finally, the proposed method is applied to the analog output design of FPGA-based systems. The proposed method can provide guidance for improving the reliability of FPGA-based DI&C systems and provide theoretical basis for the further engineering application.

Helmet Radio Frequency Phased Array Applicators Enhance Thermal Magnetic Resonance of Brain Tumors.

Thermal Magnetic Resonance (ThermalMR) integrates Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) diagnostics and targeted radio-frequency (RF) heating in a single theranostic device. The requirements for MRI (magnetic field) and targeted RF heating (electric field) govern the design of ThermalMR applicators. We hypothesize that helmet RF applicators (HPA) improve the efficacy of ThermalMR of brain tumors versus an annular phased RF array (APA). An HPA was designed using eight broadband self-grounded bow-tie (SGBT) antennae plus two SGBTs placed on top of the head. An APA of 10 equally spaced SGBTs was used as a reference. Electromagnetic field (EMF) simulations were performed for a test object (phantom) and a human head model. For a clinical scenario, the head model was modified with a tumor volume obtained from a patient with glioblastoma multiforme. To assess performance, we introduced multi-target evaluation (MTE) to ensure whole-brain slice accessibility. We implemented time multiplexed vector field shaping to optimize RF excitation. Our EMF and temperature simulations demonstrate that the HPA improves performance criteria critical to MRI and enhances targeted RF and temperature focusing versus the APA. Our findings are a foundation for the experimental implementation and application of a HPA en route to ThermalMR of brain tumors.

An energy efficient way for quantitative magnetization switching

Recent advancements in electrically controlled spin devices have been made possible through the use of multiferroic systems comprising ferroelectric (FE) and ferromagnetic (FM) materials. This progress provides a promising avenue for developing energy-efficient devices that allow for electrically controlled magnetization switching. In this study, we fabricated spin orbit torque (SOT) devices using multiferroic composites and examined the angular dependence of SOT effects on localized in-plane strain induced by an out-of-plane electric field applied to the piezoelectric substrate. The induced strain precisely modulates magnetization switching via the SOT effect in multiferroic heterostructures, which also exhibit remarkable capability to modulate strain along different orientations – a feature with great potential for future applications in logic device arrays. To investigate the influence of electric fields on magnetization switching, harmonic Hall measurements, synchrotron-powered x-ray magnetic circular dichroism-photoemission electron microscopy (XMCD-PEEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD), magnetic force microscopy (MFM), and micromagnetic simulation were conducted. The results demonstrate that electric-field-induced strain enables precise control of SOT-induced magnetization switching with significantly reduced energy consumption, making it highly suitable for next-generation spin logic devices.

Combinatorial Bionic Hierarchical Flexible Strain Sensor for Sign Language Recognition with Machine Learning.

Flexible strain sensors have been widely researched in fields such as smart wearables, human health monitoring, and biomedical applications. However, achieving a wide sensing range and high sensitivity of flexible strain sensors simultaneously remains a challenge, limiting their further applications. To address these issues, a cross-scale combinatorial bionic hierarchical design featuring microscale morphology combined with a macroscale base to balance the sensing range and sensitivity is presented. Inspired by the combination of serpentine and butterfly wing structures, this study employs three-dimensional printing, prestretching, and mold transfer processes to construct a combinatorial bionic hierarchical flexible strain sensor (CBH-sensor) with serpentine-shaped inverted-V-groove/wrinkling-cracking structures. The CBH-sensor has a high wide sensing range of 150% and high sensitivity with a gauge factor of up to 2416.67. In addition, it demonstrates the application of the CBH-sensor array in sign language gesture recognition, successfully identifying nine different sign language gestures with an impressive accuracy of 100% with the assistance of machine learning. The CBH-sensor exhibits considerable promise for use in enabling unobstructed communication between individuals who use sign language and those who do not. Furthermore, it has wide-ranging possibilities for use in the field of gesture-driven interactions in human-computer interfaces.

Ultra-thin size-controllable surface plasmon polariton laser by PDMS-assisted imprinting

Plasmonic laser has great potential to overcome the optical diffraction limit, playing a crucial role in advancing nanophotonics and nanoelectronics for on-chip integration. However, current plasmonic lasers face several challenges, such as the difficulty in controlling nanowire (NW) size, disordered arrangement, and complicated fabrication process. Herein, ultra-thin gain media for plasmonic lasers below the cutoff size of the photonic mode are prepared using the polydimethylsiloxane-assisted imprinting. This method enables precise control over the size of the perovskite NW, with the minimum size achievable being 60 nm. As a result, the plasmonic lasing is achieved from the CsPbBr3 NW-based device with a threshold as low as ∼49.13 μJ cm−2 and a Quality Factor (Q) of 1803 at room temperature, demonstrating its capability for achieving high-quality lasing. Meanwhile, a dual-pumping time-resolved fluorescence study suggests that the radiative recombination lifetime of CsPbBr3 NWs is shortened by a factor of 10 due to the Purcell effect, confirming the plasmonic effect exhibited by the device. Furthermore, a plasmonic laser array is developed using this method, demonstrating the applicability of the imprinting method in complex graphic fabrication. This breakthrough provides a solution for the application of plasmonic laser arrays in optoelectronic integration.

Optimising miniaturised hydrocyclones for enhanced separation of microplastics

Microplastics, particularly those in the 5–20µm range, pose substantial risks in aquatic environments, yet effective removal techniques are limited. This study assesses two critical geometric parameters of a 10 mm mini-hydrocyclone: inlet radius and insertion angle. Along with the inlet velocity, they are optimised collectively to enhance the MPs’ removal. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations using the Mixture model and Reynolds stress model were employed to track the particle–water–air interactions, revealing the flow dynamics and absence of an air core. The Response Surface Methodology (RSM) using a Box-Behnken design of experiments was adopted to assess the impact of the geometric and operational parameters and determine the optimal design. Recovery efficiency, concentration efficiency, and split rate were recorded during experiments and compared with CFD results, showing a good agreement between experiments and CFD simulations. The resulting novel design achieved an 88.53% MPs recovery and a concentration efficiency of 1.83, which represents an obvious improvement over the commercial design’s MPs recovery efficiency of 79.97% and concentration efficiency of 1.68. Simulations reveal that the novel design shortens the path for MPs through the forced turbulence region and modifies the velocity and turbulence fields, enhancing the concentration gradient of MPs within the mini-hydrocyclone’s chamber. Moreover, the novel design exhibits a more robust response to inlet velocity variations, a crucial advantage for its application in arrays. Experiments further confirm that a matrix composed of 10 novel mini-hydrocyclones achieves 10 percentage points higher recovery efficiency than the matrix with 10 commercial mini-hydrocyclones. These findings mark a significant step towards effective MP removal, addressing a critical environmental issue.

Compact Dual-Band Circularly Polarized Shared-Aperture Antenna for Satellite Communication Systems

A compact dual-band circularly polarized (CP) shared-aperture antenna is proposed for satellite communication. The antenna enables simultaneous dual-band functionality and CP radiation with right-handed CP in the Ku band and left-handed CP (LHCP) in the Ka band. The shared-aperture is implemented by integrating two independent subapertures, which function through frequency-multiplexed, resulting in a minimized profile (0.04 λ 0 ) and reduced complexity, making it an ideal choice for array applications. To enhance inter-frequency isolation, a circular arrangement of metal vias is incorporated. The measured results indicate that the antenna effectively encompasses a 3 dB axial ratio (AR) bandwidth of 15.6–16.5 GHz in Ku and 26.5–27.5 GHz in Ka bands. Additionally, it exhibits a broader 10 dB impedance bandwidth (IBW) and superior port isolation bandwidth exceeding 30 dB.

Nonlinear Lamb wave phased array for revealing micro-damage based on the second harmonic reconstruction

It is challenging but meaningful to detect and image the micro-damage in the early stages of engineering structure failure. The nonlinear ultrasonic technique has gained considerable attention for micro-damage detection, meanwhile, the Lamb wave phased array technique has become a practical tool for macro-damage imaging. The combination of these two techniques can pave a promising way for micro-damage imaging in plate-like structures. However, the research on nonlinear Lamb wave phased array imaging is complicated and not reported. The weak nature and hard extraction of the nonlinear features, such as the second harmonic generation, limits the application of the nonlinear Lamb wave phased array. A framework of nonlinear Lamb wave phased array for micro-damage imaging in the plate-like structure is developed. To maximize the second harmonic response of the recorded Lamb waves, two kinds of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) wafers are selected to compose the nonlinear phased array. Furthermore, focusing on the nonlinear feature extraction, the sparse representation approach is introduced for reconstructing the time-domain second harmonic generated by the micro-damage, from which a wealth of waveform information corresponding to the micro-damage can be extracted. The total focusing method (TFM) is used for micro-damage imaging based on the reconstructed second harmonic. Numerical simulation and experimental validation demonstrate the capability of the proposed framework to image the local contact acoustic nonlinearity represented by the barely visible closed fatigue crack with the nonlinear Lamb wave phased array.

Shallow Microtremor Array Survey Using Miniature and Small Arrays: Strategy for Efficient and Feasible Dense Survey

AbstractWe investigated the applicability of miniature microtremor arrays with a radius of a few meters or less to shallow surveys (up to a few tens of meters). It is shown that the upper limit wavelength normalized by the seismometer separation distance s that is analyzable by a miniature array does not depend on the observation instrument as long as the instrument has a self‐noise level that is sufficiently lower than the microtremor intensities; however, it generally depends on the average S‐wave velocity of the ground. This means that a miniature array is useful at soft‐soil sites but not hard‐soil sites. A statistical study in central Japan showed that the penetration depth by a miniature array with s = 1 m ranges from 6 to 12 m; specifically, the depth exceeds 12 m in one quarter of the cases but remains below 6 m in one quarter of the cases. This large variation is due to the variation in the average S‐wave velocity. A miniature array should thus be used in combination with a larger array with an s value of several meters to 20 m. In urbanized areas with high industrial activity, where the microtremor wavefield is likely isotropic, these arrays can be replaced by a linear array. In environments with extremely low signal‐to‐noise ratios, a less efficient zero‐crossing method should be applied to the larger array. An appropriate observation strategy should be selected for a given geoenvironment. Field examples show that our strategy enables efficient and feasible dense surveys.

Reducing Artefacts in FRF-based Damage Detection Using Novel Mode Extraction Approach for Guided Ultrasonic Waves

Damage in thin-walled structures can be detected by guided ultrasonic wave (GUW) based structural health monitoring systems. The application of phased arrays enables the scanning of large-scale structures from a single position. However, physical wave focusing requires a lot of effort. This can be significantly reduced if frequency response functions (FRFs) are used. They enable the calculation of virtual response signals for virtual focusing on any position. Although this technique offers an energy-efficient and fast possibility of damage detection, it has the disadvantage of artefacts that occur due to the multimodal nature of GUW, as damage detection is generally designed for single-mode signals. These artefacts are often reduced by mode-selective excitation/sensing or by subtracting a baseline measurement. This work presents a concept to combine an existing FRF-based damage detection algorithm and a previously presented method for mode extraction. It enables the extraction of GUW mode components from broadband, temporally sampled, single-input single-output sensor data during signal processing on the basis of the respective dispersion relations. The aim is to reduce artefacts without using mode-selective excitation/sensing or baseline measurements. A finite element simulation of GUW propagation in an isotropic structure is used to demonstrate the advantages and limitations of this approach. The simulations include multimodal and single mode evaluation to point out the added value of performing mode extraction prior to damage detection. It is supposed that the successful extraction of the mode components from the temporally sampled data results in a decreasing amplitude of the occurring artefacts compared to the multimodal case, while the case of mode-selective excitation apparently results in no artefacts. The presented concept of adding mode extraction to damage detection algorithms can lead to an increase in performance of FRF-based phased array systems. Artefacts that would lead to false detection of damage are reduced inherently during signal processing which eliminates the need for mode-selective excitation/sensing or baseline measurements.

Optimising signal quality for corrosion detection using the innovative Mag_FSRCNN model to minimise hall sensor array in eddy current testing

ABSTRACT The security of aviation hinges significantly on the strength of aircraft structures, with potential risks arising from issues like corrosion impacting the framework. Eddy current testing (ECT) sensors, particularly those utilising array technology, present a promising solution to address this concern. However, challenges persist in improving the clarity of corrosion signals while optimising associated expenses. In response to this, our study introduces the Mag_FSRCNN model, a novel framework that integrates a Fast Super-Resolution Convolutional Neural Network (FSRCNN) module network with a part of Generator module of Generative Adversarial Network to enhance magnetic images obtained by the ECT sensor array. Mag_FSRCNN surpasses traditional methods, showcasing high-resolution capabilities in enhancing ECT signal images. The model demonstrates excellence when evaluated using metrics such as Structural Similarity Index, Root Mean Square Error, and Peak Signal-to-Noise Ratio. These results significantly contribute to the ongoing progress of ECT sensors, facilitating improved resolution and cost-effective application of Hall sensor arrays in the current evolution of ECT sensor technology.

Random Projection‐Based Locality‐Sensitive Hashing in a Memristor Crossbar Array with Stochasticity for Sparse Self‐Attention‐Based Transformer

AbstractSelf‐attention mechanism is critically central to the state‐of‐the‐art transformer models. Because the standard full self‐attention has quadratic complexity with respect to the input's length L, resulting in prohibitively large memory for very long sequences, sparse self‐attention enabled by random projection (RP)‐based locality‐sensitive hashing (LSH) has recently been proposed to reduce the complexity to O(L log L). However, in current digital computing hardware with a von Neumann architecture, RP, which is essentially a matrix multiplication operation, incurs unavoidable time and energy‐consuming data shuttling between off‐chip memory and processing units. In addition, it is known that digital computers simply cannot generate provably random numbers. With the emerging analog memristive technology, it is shown that it is feasible to harness the intrinsic device‐to‐device variability in the memristor crossbar array for implementing the RP matrix and perform RP‐LSH computation in memory. On this basis, sequence prediction tasks are performed with a sparse self‐attention‐based Transformer in a hybrid software‐hardware approach, achieving a testing accuracy over 70% with much less computational complexity. By further harnessing the cycle‐to‐cycle variability for multi‐round hashing, 12% increase in the testing accuracy is demonstrated. This work extends the range of applications of memristor crossbar arrays to the state‐of‐the‐art large language models (LLMs).

2D Fractal Arrays of Ultrathin Silicon Nanowires as Cost‐Effective and High‐Performance Substrate for Supercapacitors

Silicon is the most diffused material in the industry; thus, considering its high capacity for energy storage, silicon‐based materials are well studied as battery anodes and supercapacitors. Si nanowires (NWs) emerge due to the high surface to volume ratio, its compatibility with a wafer processing typical of microelectronics, and are studied as anodes for lithium batteries as well as coupled with other materials for supercapacitor application. In this article, the synthesis and application are reported as a lithium anode of 2D fractal arrays of ultrathin Si NWs obtained by a thin‐film metal‐assisted chemical etching (MACE). These Si NWs exhibit a density of about 1012 NWs cm−2, maximizing the surface to volume ratio compared to silver‐salts MACE and other NW fabrication approaches. By using 2.7 μm long NWs, a pseudo‐capacitor behavior with a specific capacitance of about 274.2 μF cm−2 at a scan rate of 50 mV s−1 is obtained. This specific capacitance is two orders of magnitude higher than the one obtained in the same condition by using NWs synthesized by silver‐salt MACE. In this result, the route is opened toward the application of these fractal arrays of ultrathin Si NWs as substrate for supercapacitors with improved efficiency.

Exploring well-defined TiO2 nanotube arrays for enhancing SnO2-Sb-Nd-Pt electrode performance

The short service life and low catalytic activity of electrodes are the major bottlenecks limiting the practical applications of current electrocatalytic oxidation technology in wastewater treatment. In this study, a novel Ti/SnO2-Sb-Nd-Pt electrode loading TiO2 nanotube (TiO2-NTs) array was proposed and prepared. The optimized TiO2 nanotube (TiO2-NTs) arrays provided abundant anchoring sites for SnO2-Sb-Nd-Pt active coating and improved the bonding strength between the Ti matrix and the SnO2-Sb-Nd-Pt active coating as a mediator, as a result, higher electrocatalytic performance and stability. The nitrobenzene (NB) removal and service life were significantly higher in Ti/TiO2-NTs/SnO2-Sb-Nd-Pt (91.08 % and 4381.9 days) when compared to Ti/SnO2-Sb-Nd-Pt (80.61 % and 1151.2 days). In addition, the outstanding electrocatalytic performance of Ti/TiO2-NTs/SnO2-Sb-Nd-Pt with an oxygen evolution potential of 2.03 V and total voltametric charge of 5.88 mC cm−2 makes it a promising candidate for future industrial applications. These findings will lay a solid foundation for broadening the applications of well-defined TiO2-NTs arrays prepared via the two-step anodization.

Study on the energy capture spectrum of a two-body hinged-raft wave energy converter

Wave energy converters (WECs) of the hinged-raft type offer flexible arrangements and can be further applied in arrays. This study employs a numerical model to investigate the energy capture spectrum (ECS) of a two-body hinged-raft WEC under random waves utilizing the open-source simulation software WEC-Sim. The model explores in detail the combined effects of random wave parameters and WEC parameters, including the power take-off (PTO) damping coefficient, PTO stiffness coefficient, and horizontal hinge position, on the ECS. The findings revealed that the hinged-raft WEC is highly sensitive to the average wave period and adaptable to varying wave heights. Optimal energy capture under conditions of varying wave heights can be achieved by adjusting a specific PTO coefficient. These findings underscore the complex response of the two-body hinged-raft WEC to wave parameters and emphasize the importance of understanding these sensitivities and adaptabilities to optimize the WEC system, enhance efficiency, and promote its application in arrays.

Thermally robust HfNx-based bidirectional diode and its integration with RRAM for crossbar array application

Thermally robust HfNx-based bidirectional diode and its integration with RRAM for crossbar array application

Circularly Polarized Series Array and MIMO Application for Sub-Millimeter Wave/Terahertz Band

This article presents a compact, planar, and circularly polarized array antenna operating in the W-band (84.5–110 GHz), with all its prototypes fabricated using a low-cost, traditional, microwave printed circuit board composed of Rogers RT/duroid 5880 (ε<sub>r</sub> = 2.2, tanδ = 0.009). The final design that was fabricated and measured was a 4 × 4 array antenna having an overall size of 9 mm × 20 mm × 0.254 mm that used series feeding to reduce its sidelobes. Measurements of the 4 × 4 patch antenna array showed approximately 6.9% 3-dB axial ratio bandwidth along with 15.2 dBi maximum right-hand circularly polarized (RHCP) antenna gain at 100 GHz. The array antenna yielded RHCP radiation characterized by a low profile, low cross-polarization levels (<−25 dB), low sidelobe levels (≤−10 dB), and high radiation efficiency (>91%). Additionally, a two-port MIMO antenna system was investigated by considering side-by-side and front-tofront configurations, both of which achieved good isolation and considerable envelope correlation coefficient and diversity gain values. Therefore, the proposed series array and MIMO antennas can be reasonable candidates for 6G applications of the sub-THz band (100– 110 GHz) in ultra-high-speed wireless and satellite communication systems.

Amylase and Cellulase Production from Newly Isolated Bacillus subtilis Using Acid Treated Potato Peel Waste.

Species belonging to the genus Bacillus produce many advantageous extracellular enzymes that have tremendous applications on a commercial scale for the textile, detergent, feed, food, and beverage industries. This study aimed to isolate potent thermo-tolerant amylolytic and cellulolytic bacterium from the local environment. Using the Box-Behnken design of response surface methodology, we further optimized the amylase and cellulase activity. The isolate was identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing as Bacillus subtilis QY4. This study utilized potato peel waste (PPW) as the biomaterial, which is excessively being dumped in an open environment. Nutritional status of the dried PPW was determined by proximate analysis. All experimental runs were carried out in 250 mL Erlenmeyer flasks containing acid treated PPW as a substrate by the thermos-tolerant Bacillus subtilis QY4 incubated at 37 °C for 72 h of submerged fermentation. Results revealed that the dilute H2SO4 assisted autoclaved treatment favored more amylase production (0.601 IU/mL/min) compared to the acid treatment whereas high cellulase production (1.269 IU/mL/min) was observed in the dilute acid treatment and was found to be very effective compared to the acid assisted autoclaved treatment. The p-value, F-value, and coefficient of determination proved the significance of the model. These results suggest that PPW could be sustainably used to produce enzymes, which offer tremendous applications in various industrial arrays, particularly in biofuel production.