Electronic Flows Research Articles

Assessment of robustness attributes in electronic products supply chains

To facilitate the shift to circular models, supply chains urgently need to be strengthened and made more resilient and robust. The COVID-19 pandemic generated problems in logistics activities, disrupting supply chains, including electronic products flows. In this context, based on the need to keep supply chains reliable in the face of the risks inherent in their processes, this work aims to identify the attributes for a robust supply chain and analyze the interrelationship among them using DEMATEL technique. As a result, it was observed that the agility factor, risk-oriented management, and flexibility are the most important factors, and that Information Technology and Human Resources are the most influential (causal factors) for the design of a robust supply chain in the context of electronic products.

Highly efficient fiber to Si waveguide free-form coupler for foundry-scale silicon photonics

As silicon photonics transitions from research to commercial deployment, packaging solutions that efficiently couple light into highly compact and functional sub-micrometer silicon waveguides are imperative but remain challenging. The 220 nm silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platform, poised to enable large-scale integration, is the most widely adopted by foundries, resulting in established fabrication processes and extensive photonic component libraries. The development of a highly efficient, scalable, and broadband coupling scheme for this platform is therefore of paramount importance. Leveraging two-photon polymerization (TPP) and a deterministic free-form micro-optics design methodology based on the Fermat’s principle, this work demonstrates an ultra-efficient and broadband 3-D coupler interface between standard SMF-28 single-mode fibers and silicon waveguides on the 220 nm SOI platform. The coupler achieves a low coupling loss of 0.8 dB for the fundamental TE mode, along with 1 dB bandwidth exceeding 180 nm. The broadband operation enables diverse bandwidth-driven applications ranging from communications to spectroscopy. Furthermore, the 3-D free-form coupler also enables large tolerance to fiber misalignments and manufacturing variability, thereby relaxing packaging requirements toward cost reduction capitalizing on standard electronic packaging process flows.

The Mother's Role in Building Children's Intelligence Using Social Media

Social media is a collection of internet-based applications based on web 2.0 ideology and technology to enable the creation and exchange of content by its users. The impacts arising from the covid-19 pandemic have affected all aspects, including legal, social, educational, etc. Like online schools, children often use cell phones to teach and understand that cell phones used to use social media should be intelligent and wise. This study uses sociological juridical research methods by going directly to the field to determine the actual conditions. This study indicates that mothers have difficulty understanding the importance of being intelligent and wise in using social media because if they are not wise and intelligent, it can cause new problems, not only social problems but also legal problems. The government has issued Law concerning Electronic Information and Transactions. It regulates various things to protect against the misuse of electronic information flows.

An obsolescence management framework for a defense industry company

Obsolescence issues in complex product lifecycles can cause disruptions in projects, leading to delays in project schedules, significant costs, and loss of prestige, particularly in defense companies. This article aims to address the obsolescence management issues of electronic components in complex product lifecycles in the defense industry with a new framework called the "Shell Structure”. The Shell Structure acts as a shield that safeguards and reinforces electronic components involved in every phase of the product lifecycle from obsolescence problems. The Shell Structure consists of five main processes: project management, research and development, manufacturing and services, supply chain management, and the new obsolescence management process. A new overarching obsolescence management process integrated into these main processes have been designed, specifically tailored for a large-scale defense industry company, using a process map example. The main obsolescence management process encompasses three subprocesses: the development of obsolescence management plan, the development of obsolescence management strategies, and the monitoring of obsolescence management plan. These processes interact in real-time, ensuring that electronic component data flows seamlessly in the context of digitalization utilizing Complex Event Processing System architecture. The obsolescence management-focused framework fosters interdisciplinary collaboration among the main processes of defense companies through the Shell Structure.

Electronic Waste Treatment Flows in Norway: Investigating recycling rates and embodied emissions

Norway is one of the countries in Europe generating the most waste from electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) per capita. Extended producer responsibility schemes are incorporated as part of the national waste policy, with clear goals towards recovery of materials from the waste fraction. Investigating the WEEE flows in Norway, we observe clear improvements needed in the transparency of the sector, and based on the information gathered, we estimate lower recycling of materials than provided through official statistics based on reporting. 68% of WEEE sent to recycling treatments are recycled into reusable material. Accounting for WEEE occurring outside of the treatment system, only 58% is recovered for recycling. We also estimate the CO2-eq emissions of different End-of-Life treatments of WEEE, and the embodied CO2-equivalent emissions of each WEEE category, illustrating 1) what category carry the largest environmental burden with respect to its embedded materials, and 2) the environmental impact of specific treatment options within the system. We show how the recycling rate of precious metals have significant influence over the environmental impact recovery potential of the system. Its not just the amount of material that is recycled that is important, including a proxy for expended emissions effectively illustrates the need for more precise policy implementation to ensure a functional circular economy.

Waste electrical and electronic equipment flows in Ukraine

This paper estimates the weight of electrical and electronic equipment on the Ukrainian market (more than 800 thousand t/year). According to official statistics, weight of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) in Ukraine is ∼20 thousand t/year. This study has showed a significant discrepancy between the expected weight of WEEE and official statistics. More than 95% of WEEE is not taken into account in waste flows. Taking into account the lifespan of various equipment and weight of equipment placed on the Ukrainian market in previous years, WEEE generation is estimated at more than 1 Mt/year. The share of household WEEE is estimated at 200 thousand t/year (5 kg/year per inhabitant), which is slightly lower than that in other eastern European countries. Computers and electronics hold almost half of household WEEE. WEEE collection rate varies from 0.6% (household devices) to 10.4% (batteries), depending on the waste category. This is much lower than that in the EU. Based on the findings from this paper, one can conclude that the lack of WEEE accounting in the household and commercial sectors of Ukraine creates a significant underestimation of WEEE flows in official data.

Shaping Electronic Flows with Strongly Correlated Physics.

Nonequilibrium quantum transport is of central importance in nanotechnology. Its description requires the understanding of strong electronic correlations that couple atomic-scale phenomena to the nanoscale. So far, research in correlated transport has focused predominantly on few-channel transport, precluding the investigation of cross-scale effects. Recent theoretical advances enable the solution of models that capture the interplay between quantum correlations and confinement beyond a few channels. This problem is the focus of this study. We consider an atomic impurity embedded in a metallic nanosheet spanning two leads, showing that transport is significantly altered by tuning only the phase of a single local hopping parameter. Furthermore─depending on this phase─correlations reshape the electronic flow throughout the sheet, either funneling it through the impurity or scattering it away from a much larger region. This demonstrates the potential for quantum correlations to bridge length scales in the design of nanoelectronic devices and sensors.

Unlocking the potential of e-waste: A material quantification analysis of Cu, Cr, In, Mg, Nb, and Nd in the EU

Waste electronics present a growing concern due to their economic value and material intensification, making proper collection and recycling essential for sustainable growth. However, quantifying the size and composition of waste flows is challenging. Using a material flow analysis this study combines electronic waste flows and product compositions of six selected elements (chromium, copper, indium, magnesium, neodymium, and niobium) based on their significance in the electrical and electronic products (EEE) in the EU. The study found that in 2018, 52 % of all WEEE generated in EU28+3 was properly collected and recycled, and the remaining 48 % were unreported or unaccounted for of which the selected elements represented 5 %, representing a combined loss of €1.41 billion. The obtained results provide a much-needed perspective to map electronic products on a material level for circular material supply. Proper collection and recycling of WEEE are crucial for sustainable growth and the recovery of valuable materials.

Electronic viscous boundary layer in gated graphene

We investigate the boundary layer problem in viscous electronic flows in gated graphene. Recent experiments on graphene hydrodynamics indicate the emergence of non-Poiseuille behavior, a feature that we reproduce with direct numerical simulations of gated graphene electrons. In fact, the velocity profile displays a maximum value close to the boundary and then decreases as it approaches the bulk. By taking into account the compressibility of the electron fluid, that arises from the dependence of effective hydrodynamic mass on the number density, we derive a generalized Blasius equation governing the transverse velocity profile, in excellent agreement with the simulation results. Evidence of a non-monotonic profile and further deviations with respect to incompressible (classical) hydrodynamics may shed some light on the subject of non-topological edge currents in graphene.

A brief review of design and simulation methodology in silicon photonics

Powerful electronic design automation tools have enabled the rapid development of electronic Integrated Circuits (ICs). Similar to electronic ICs, silicon photonics technology has sufficiently matured, and large-scale photonic circuits can now be implanted into a single chip. Design tools have also evolved from primary devices to complex photonic circuits. In this paper, we review the current state of photonic design automation in terms of device modeling methods and circuit simulation methodologies, and compare the photonics design flow with mature electronic design automation design flows. Key challenges and opportunities are also discussed.

Use of the Vula App to refer patients in the West Coast District: A descriptive exploratory qualitative study.

BackgroundReferral systems play a pivotal role in coordination and quality of care and should be evaluated for their utility. The Vula App is used by various disciplines and hospitals in South Africa to refer patients. The aim was to explore the perceptions of medical practitioners regarding the use of the Vula App in the West Coast District.MethodsA descriptive, exploratory qualitative study used semi-structured interviews with 11 medical practitioners. The highest and lowest users of the Vula App were selected from seven district hospitals. Qualitative data analysis used the framework method and Atlas-ti.ResultsThere were five themes: impact on the referral process, quality of care, coordination of care, continuous professional development, and how to improve the Vula App. Its use was well established in the outpatient and semi-urgent setting, but participants were hesitant to rely on it for immediate advice. Specialist advice via the Vula App enabled practitioners to manage patients remotely. The referral hand-over function had a positive impact on the coordination of care. Advice and feedback via the Vula App assisted with continuous professional development.ConclusionThe Vula App is a useful tool to refer patients to the emergency centre and outpatient departments. It can improve the immediate quality of care and sequential coordination of care. It has the potential to enable continuous professional development. There is a need to standardise its use, to ensure electronic information flows back to the district and to integrate the data into the district’s health information system.

What gets measured gets managed – does it? Uncovering the waste electrical and electronic equipment flows in the European Union

Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) is valued for its usability, generating an important waste stream, but overall information on their flows through society is generally not available. Data on End-of-Life (EoL) flows is scattered, unstructured, with varying classifications and formats, and uncertain levels of data quality and availability. This provides a big challenge of a structured mapping of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) flows, both officially reported as collected and complementary flows (the term refers to all flows not documented at a national level via designated official compliance schemes). To address these issues, a model quantitatively describing the WEEE flows has been developed based on the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/699 and WEEE Directive collection targets. Consequently, it evaluates the impacts of WEEE Directive policies that have been adopted in the past. The model is applied to the EU Member States, as well as Great Britain, Norway, and Switzerland, for the reference year of 2018. The results show that about 9.7 Mt of WEEE was generated, whereas roughly 5.0 Mt were collected. The analysis shows that a significant amount of waste (4.7 Mt) was not properly collected and recycled. Of the total amount of complementary flows, the majority, approx. 1.1 Mt was in complementary recycling (mixed metal scrap). Moreover, the obtained results provide an insight to improve collection targets through multidimensional drivers, i.e., economic policies, legal framework, and sustainability approach that are needed to be set in waste management.

Кутубхона: лойиҳалар, рақамли муҳит, электрон ресурслар…

Today, electronic information flows, like many industries, are changing the role of libraries in society in a positive way. The role of the United Nations, UNESCO and IFLA in this regard is also fragmented. Just an example. It is known that the UN Sustainable Development Program has been adopted and is being implemented in many countries. The program has 17 goals. The goals of sustainable development can be said to be a call for specific action to be put forward by developed and developing countries.

Negative nonlocal vicinity resistance of viscous flow in a two-dimensional electron system

We perform a quantum transport study of Hall viscous liquid in multiterminal narrow Hallbar devices of a high-mobility two-dimensional electron system (2DES) in GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructure. In the nonlocal transport measurements of vicinity geometry under magnetic fields $(B)$, we observe that the absolute negative magnetoresistance $({R}_{xx})$ value $({R}_{\text{min}}<0)$ and the corresponding magnetic field $({B}_{\text{min}})$ are both inversely proportional to the adjacent Hallbar arm distance $(L)$. The occurrence of negative resistance is dependent on the characteristic lengths of the devices and the electron flow direction under $B$-fields. The minimal resistance ${R}_{\text{min}}$ occurs when the cyclotron radius ${R}_{C}$ approximates $L$. Multiples of high-order ($n\mathrm{th}$-order) ${R}_{\text{min},n}$'s persist from low to high magnetic fields in a large sample size of $L=5\phantom{\rule{4pt}{0ex}}\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{m}$. Our experimental study reveals the transport behaviors in the vicinity regime, where the negative resistances depict viscous electronic flows in the high-mobility 2DES. In addition, the negative and high-order minimal resistances expand to a magnetic field of several kGs.

Electronic commerce and its regulation in the European Union and China

The article provides a statistical analysis of the trends in the development of e-commerce in the world in general and in China in particular, a comparative legal analysis of the system of legal regulation of key aspects affecting the functioning of e-commerce in the European Union and in the People’s Republic of China (further PRC). The research methodology is based on a systematic approach and includes the methods of the general scientific group (analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction), as well as special methods: statistical analysis, content analysis of scientific literature on the research topic, the method of comparative legal analysis. As a result of the study, the author came to the conclusion that the legislation of China and the European Union regarding the regulation of e-commerce is aimed at fundamentally different goals: in the EU, legislation is aimed at protecting private transactions and trade, and for China, the priority is the development of legal norms that allow the state as much as possible control electronic commercial flows and procuring a cybersecurity in e-commerce sector.

Methods of Electronic Data Formalization in the Transport Information Space

The ongoing research into the transport and technological processes of the railway industry and the realization of its potential shows an effective correspondence and correlation between the development and expansion of the spheres of influence of information and digital technologies. In this context, it is relevant to solve the task of obtaining knowledge and experience from the transport and information space, which are formed by the results of the processes functioning. For this purpose, it is necessary to form innovative technologies of application of the received knowledge, skills, experience created by the information systems which have received the name, as artificial cognitive systems. In the present work the task of receiving knowledge and experience from transport information environment is investigated. The conceptual model of correlation of electronic data in transport and information space is considered, which defines the interconnection of electronic data flows about problem areas of processes realization based on received and accumulated knowledge and experience. The method of electronic data formalization in transport and information space, which correlates transport and technological processes (subprocesses) between subjects and executors of processes (subprocesses). For application of a method of electronic data formalization the architecture of a multi-agent control system of transport and technological processes in a single transport and information space is offered. The presented methods of electronic data formalization were used by the authors to develop information systems that have passed state registration in the Russian Federation.

Highly sensitive interfaces of graphene electrical-electrochemical vertical devices for on drop atto-molar DNA detection

The development of novel high-sensitivity DNA-based biosensors is beneficial, as these devices have applications in the identification of genetic risk factors, medical diagnostics, and environmental monitoring. Herein, we report on the first robust device capable of detecting DNA on a microliter drop with a zepto-molar (10−21) concentration. To accomplish this, we engineered an electrical-electrochemical vertical device (EEVD) that comprises a novel drain and source terminal in a short-circuited configuration, paired with an ideal non-polarizable reference electrode. Vertical electron transfer occurs perpendicularly to the graphene plane, while the electronic current flows through the graphene van der Waals (vdW) heterojunctions. Ferrocene adsorbed on graphene was strategically chosen as the vdW heterojunction redox component. Charge carrier insertion into the graphene makes the EEVD 10 times more sensitive than traditional graphene field-effect transistors. Interfacial potential changes were measured for single-stranded DNA detection with an unprecedented zepto-molar limit of detection.

Phase Equalization, Charge Transfer, Information Flows and Electron Communications in Donor–Acceptor Systems

Subsystem phases and electronic flows involving the acidic and basic sites of the donor (B) and acceptor (A) substrates of chemical reactions are revisited. The emphasis is placed upon the phase–current relations, a coherence of elementary probability flows in the preferred reaction complex, and on phase-equalization in the equilibrium state of the whole reactive system. The overall and partial charge-transfer (CT) phenomena in alternative coordinations are qualitatively examined and electronic communications in A—B systems are discussed. The internal polarization (P) of reactants is examined, patterns of average electronic flows are explored, and energy changes associated with P/CT displacements are identified using the chemical potential and hardness descriptors of reactants and their active sites. The nonclassical (phase/current) contributions to resultant gradient information are investigated and the preferred current-coherence in such donor–acceptor systems is predicted. It is manifested by the equalization of equilibrium local phases in the entangled subsystems.

Forecasting electronic waste flows for effective circular economy planning

Rapid evolution in the consumer electronics sector has created new resource and waste challenges that are inadequately managed in the current linear product system. Circular economy (CE) strategies offer potential to close the loop on electronic products and materials, but often lack the future-oriented perspective needed to keep pace with this dynamic sector. The present study addresses this challenge by developing a logistic forecasting material flow model that can predict future resource and waste flows for products with abundant historic sales data (mature products) as well as for products that have just entered the market (emerging products). One of the key trends observed across current and legacy electronics is the steadily shrinking innovation cycle, where the time between a product’s market entry and peak sales is decreasing over time. This trend, coupled with extensive historic and modern product sales data, was used to create adoption scenario forecasts for emerging products, like fitness trackers, smart thermostats, and drones. Findings show that these devices are likely to have rapid uptake in the market, but may be quickly replaced by subsequent product innovations. In contrast, waste flow forecasts for mature products like CRTs, desktops, monitors and flat panel TVs showed their declining contribution to the U.S. e-waste stream. This study contributes a modeling framework that can be used to inform CE strategies in electronics by identifying near term opportunities and risks in end-of-life management of products to extend product life and close the loop on key materials.

Transportation of Electronic Flows in Magnetic Periodic Focusing Systems with an Anharmonic Magnetic Field Distribution Designed for Millimeter-Range Wave Traveling Lamps

Abstract—The paper considers theoretical and practical problems on developing electron-optical systems of traveling wave tubes (TWTs) that focus an intense electron flow via a magnetic periodic focusing system (MPFS) upon advancement into the millimeter-wave range. An analytical solution has been found for the magnetic field distribution in an MPFS TWT combined with a retarding system with magnetically soft inserts that form a passage channel with a diameter substantially less than the internal diameter of the tip. The stable focusing zones of the electron flow are determined for the considered MPFS, which makes it possible to focusing the flow with magnetic field parameters exceeding the critical values of a conventional MPFS.