Fast Deformation Research Articles

Fast and self-recoverable photoinduced deformation behavior of azobenzene-containing poly(arylene ether)s with binaphthalene groups

The azobenzene-containing poly(arylene ether)s with binaphthalene groups showed fast and self-recoverable photoinduced deformation behavior, which has not been reported.

A Novel Method for Characterization of Ultralow Viscosity NCF Layers Using TCB for 3D Assembly

Abstract For die-to-wafer (D2W) stacking of high-density interconnects and fine-pitch microbumps, underfill serves to fill the spaces in-between microbumps for protection and reliability. Among the different types of underfill, nonconductive film (NCF) has the advantages of fillet and volume control. However, one of the challenges is the solder joint wetting. An NCF must have good embedded-flux activation to mitigate Cu UBM pad oxidation due to the repeated TCB cycles that accelerate oxidation on neighboring dice. The flux in the NCF also helps in wetting the solder bumps. To realize efficient solder wetting, one must also understand the NCF deformation quality, which is a function of its viscosity. This parameter has direct impact on the deformation of solder bumps. High-viscosity NCF would be difficult to deform, thus preventing solder contact to pad during TCB reflow temperature. High bond force is required and could lead to reduced alignment accuracy. For a low viscous NCF, it requires low bond force. Solder joint wetting is a challenge with excessive squeezeout due to fast and instantaneous deformation. We seek to demonstrate in this article a creative methodology for NCF material characterization, considering the factors of NCF viscosity, deformation, and solder squeezeout. We use TCB tool position-tracking data to define the deformation curve of the NCF as a function of temperature and time at very fast profile of TCB. We use the NCF viscosity curve as reference in relation to the actual deformation, and predict dynamic deformation in three different configurations. Deformation test configurations were performed on chips with and without microbumps bonded with a rigid flat glass surface and with a bottom Cu UBM pad. The experiments were performed with different heating ramp rates at target above Sn reflow of ~250°C interface temperature. As validation, we applied the optimized TCB process (force, temperature, and ramp rate) on a test vehicle with 20 and 40 μm pitch daisy chains and obtained very good connectivity with good joint and IMC formation.

A multifunctional hollow TPU fiber filled with liquid metal exhibiting fast electrothermal deformation and recovery.

Conductive fibers have received considerable interest due to their potential applications in the flexible electronics field. Fabricating a conductive fiber that can realize fast deformation with stretchability for multifunctional applications is still highly appealing. Here, we present a deformable conductive fiber (DCF) fabricated by injecting liquid metal (LM) into a hollow thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) fiber; the DCF can be shaped into a 2D or 3D shape by an electrothermal method at the thermoplastic transition point of TPU. Combined with the solid-liquid phase transition characteristics of the LM at its melting point, the DCF exhibits a variable shape memory feature at two transition points. We have demonstrated that the double-torsional DCF and the helical DCF can act as a capacitive sensor and an inductive sensor, respectively, and they have both been used for human motion monitoring. In addition, the helical DCF can also act as a stretchable electrode with excellent electrical properties (resistance change <2%) under a maximal mechanical strain of 3300%. Overall, the DCF presents great potential for applications in human motion monitoring, soft robotics and smart electronic textiles.

Estimation of hydromechanical parameters of limb lymphedematous tissue with the use of chamber tests

In this paper, in vivo methods of estimation of the shear modulus and hydraulic permeability of subcutaneous tissue of lower limb are presented. The experimental technique is based on single- or two-chamber inflation-deflation tests in which temporal changes in limb circumference under the test chamber for cyclic loading are registered. Simplified models for fast undrained deformation and slow creep of oedematous tissue with squeezing out interstitial liquid were considered. Finite element simulations of the chamber test within a finite deformation poroelastic model were elaborated. Formulas necessary to estimate the shear modulus and permeability of subcutaneous tissue were derived and then tested or calibrated using the results of poroelastic simulations. An example of application of the derived formulas for clinical data obtained from the chamber test was discussed. A simple in vivo methods of estimation of the hydromechanical properties of lymphedematous tissue (shear modulus and permeability) were proposed. The strengths and weaknesses of the proposed methodology were discussed.

Retracted] MEC‐Driven Fast Deformation Monitoring Based on GNSS Signal

In the deformation monitoring based on satellite positioning, the extraction of the effective deformation signal which needs plenty of computing resources is very important. Mobile‐edge computing can provide low latency and near‐edge computing agility for the deformation monitoring process. In this paper, we propose an edge computing network architecture to reduce the satellite observation time while maintaining a certain positioning accuracy. In such architecture, the state transition equation is established for monitoring, and the Kalman filter is used to reduce the error caused by the reduction of the observation time. At the same time, the method of determining the initial filter value and the filtering process are given. Through the actual monitoring of a certain section of railway track, the feasibility of the proposed method is proved.

Corrigendum to “MEC‐Driven Fast Deformation Monitoring Based on GNSS Signal”

Corrigendum to “MEC‐Driven Fast Deformation Monitoring Based on GNSS Signal”

An Improved Multiphysics Analysis Model for the Short-Circuit Fault Ride-Through Capability Evaluation of the MMC Submodule Busbar

The short-circuit fault is the severest fault that threatens the reliability of the modular multilevel converter (MMC) submodule busbar. When the short-circuit fault occurs, a huge overcurrent will flow through the busbar. Since the discharge time is very short and the discharge current is too large, the discharge current produces a strong skin effect on the busbar, resulting in overheating and deformation of the busbar, which may cause the permanent failure of the busbar. The busbar is the key component of the MMC submodule. It is therefore crucial to evaluate the fault ride-through capability of the MMC submodule busbar. The key feature of the short-circuit behavior of the busbar is that the large electromagnetic force is induced by the fault current, which causes the deformation of the busbar in a very short transient. The fast deformation of the conductor will generate the electromotive force induced current by the fast deformation of the conductor in a strong magnetic field. Plasticity of the conductor also significantly influences the deformation of the conductor. The existing researches on the failure mechanism of the busbar did not take these two important factors into account. This paper proposes an improved multiphysics analysis model which considers both the dynamic electromotive force and plasticity for analyzing the reliability of the MMC submodule busbar under the short-circuit fault. The fault current through the busbar is derived by numerical calculation. Utilizing the fault current as the input, an improved multiphysics analyzing model, which takes both features into account is proposed. Simulation results show that the dynamic electromagnetic force induced current and plasticity play dominant roles in the deformation of the busbar and are key factors that need to be taken into account in the short-circuit analysis of the busbar.

Topological similarity measurement: a methodology for fast full-field deformation estimation

The correlation-based image subset matching methods such as digital image correlation (DIC) are widely used for measuring the deformation fields. The specimen surface must be covered with speckle patterns, or more exactly, random intensity distributions with sufficient contrast, which act as a carrier of deformation information, to acquire reliable and accurate matching in the correlation calculation. The requirement of the artificial speckles on the specimen surface inevitably contaminates the specimen. To maintain the cleanliness of the specimen surface, an in situ deformation estimation method without speckle fabrication is developed and its result is demonstrated. Topological similarity measurement (TSM) is a feature vector-based displacement estimating algorithm for full-field deformations that uses feature vectors that encode the relative positions of neighboring mark spots. Compared with the DIC method, this approach makes up for its deficiency in displacement estimation of speckle-free flat surface by incorporating a topological arrangement-based feature vector, subpixel center location method, and biharmonic spline interpolation method. Experimental results indicate that the proposed TSM method is feasible to become the preferred displacement estimation method for uniform deformation. As a complement to the DIC method, the TSM method is more suitable for uniform deformation distribution, which requires high measurement accuracy but cannot use DIC.

A structurally frame-indifferent model for anisotropic visco-hyperelastic materials

One of the main theoretical issues in developing a theory of anisotropic viscoelastic media at finite strains lies in the proper definition of the material symmetry group and its evolution with time. In this paper the matter is discussed thoroughly and addressed by introducing a novel anisotropic remodelling equation compatible with the principle of structural frame indifference, a requirement that every inelastic theory based on the multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient must obey to. The evolution laws of the dissipative process are completely determined by two scalar functions, the elastic strain energy and the dissipation densities. The proper choice of the dissipation function allows us to reduce the proposed model to the model of an anisotropic fluid, when deformation is sufficiently slow, or to the anisotropic hyperelastic solid for fast deformations. Finally, a few prototype examples are discussed to highlight the role of the relaxation times in the constitutive response.

2,2](5,8)Picenophanedienes: Syntheses, Structural Analyses, Molecular Dynamics, and Reversible Intramolecular Structure Conversion.

This study presents an important and efficient synthetic approach to 5,8-dibromo-2,11-di-tert-butylpicene (3), with multigram scale, which was then converted to a new series of picenophanes (6-10). The tub-shaped [2,2](5,8)picenophanediene 8 with two cis-ethylene linkers was explored using X-ray crystallography. The tub-to-tub inversion proceed through the successive bending of the linkers and the barrier for isopropyl-substituted derivative 10 was experimentally estimated to be 18.7 kcal/mol. Picenophanes with a large π-system and semi-rigid structure exhibited anomalous photophysical properties. The ethano-bridged picenophane shows the weak exciton delocalization while the cis-ethylene-bridged picenophane exhibits dual emission rendered by the weakly delocalized exciton and excimer. With the aid of the ultrafast time-resolved emission spectroscopy, the mechanism of the excimer formation is resolved, showing a unique behavior of two-state reversible reaction with fast structural deformation whose lifetime is around 20 ps at 298 K. This work demonstrates that the slight difference in the bridge of tub-shaped picenophanes renders distinct photophysical behavior, revealing the potential of harnessing inter-moiety reaction in the picenophane systems.

Light-steered locomotion of muscle-like hydrogel by self-coordinated shape change and friction modulation

Many creatures have the ability to traverse challenging environments by using their active muscles with anisotropic structures as the motors in a highly coordinated fashion. However, most artificial robots require multiple independently activated actuators to achieve similar purposes. Here we report a hydrogel-based, biomimetic soft robot capable of multimodal locomotion fueled and steered by light irradiation. A muscle-like poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) nanocomposite hydrogel is prepared by electrical orientation of nanosheets and subsequent gelation. Patterned anisotropic hydrogels are fabricated by multi-step electrical orientation and photolithographic polymerization, affording programmed deformations. Under light irradiation, the gold-nanoparticle-incorporated hydrogels undergo concurrent fast isochoric deformation and rapid increase in friction against a hydrophobic substrate. Versatile motion gaits including crawling, walking, and turning with controllable directions are realized in the soft robots by dynamic synergy of localized shape-changing and friction manipulation under spatiotemporal light stimuli. The principle and strategy should merit designing of continuum soft robots with biomimetic mechanisms.

Spontaneous deformation and fission of oil droplets on an aqueous surfactant solution.

We investigated the spontaneous deformation and fission of a tetradecane droplet containing palmitic acid (PA) on a stearyltrimethylammonium chloride (STAC) aqueous solution. In this system, the generation and rupture of the gel layer composed of PA and STAC induce the droplet deformation and fission. To investigate the characteristics of the droplet-fission dynamics, we obtained the time series of the number of the droplets produced by fission and confirmed that the number has a peak at a certain STAC concentration. Since the fission of the droplet should be led by the deformation, we analyzed four parameters which may relate to the fission dynamics from the spatiotemporal correlation of the droplet-boundary velocity. We found that the parameter which corresponds to the expansion speed had the strongest positive correlation among them, and thus we concluded that the faster deformation would be the key factor for the fission dynamics.

Rheological fingerprinting as an effective tool to guide development of personal care formulations

Conventional rheological techniques in the linear viscoelastic region provide insights about the spatial configuration of the microstructural components of personal care formulations in their 'at-rest' state. However, they fail to describe the textural experience associated with large and fast deformations during daily consumer application. In this study we present a non-conventional rheological technique-large amplitude oscillatory shear (LAOS)-for probing the transformation of a material during its application. This technique is proposed a practical tool for formulators in their efforts to design products with desired textural attributes. A non-linear rheological technique termed LAOS was utilized to capture the textural expression perceived by consumers. Lissajous plots (stress vs. strain or strain rate) provide a fingerprint of the formula and are utilized to both analyse the thickening mechanism and monitor the influence of various parameters, such as the chemistry, molecular properties, colloidal parameters and processing conditions. In this study, we showcased several approaches for modifying the texture of personal care formulations and show the influence of various parameters on the characteristics of the Lissajous curves and their relation to sensorial perception. This fingerprinting technique shows that increasing the molecular weight or hydrophobic modification boosts the elasticity and thickening efficiency of a given polymer. Differences in the chemistry of rheological ingredients also influence the characteristic Lissajous fingerprint. In high concentration surfactant systems, which tend to form worm-like micelles, their unique Lissajous fingerprints indicate structure rebuild because of fast kinetics at large but slow deformations. Analysis of lamellar gel-based hair conditioner formulations demonstrates the unique high yield stress of these types of materials, accompanied by the fast breakdown transition from a solid to viscous structure because of their crystalline lamellar gel structure. The LAOS technique presented in this article is intended to better capture the textural expression perceived by consumers. Lissajous plots-generated from the LAOS experimental data-provide a fingerprint of the tested formula and are utilized to both analyse the thickening mechanism and monitor the influence of various parameters, such as the chemistry and molecular weight of the thickener, pH of the formula medium and influence of other ingredients in the formula (surfactants, emulsifiers, etc.).

Landslide Monitoring and the Inventory Map Validation by Ensemble DInSAR Processing of ASAR and PALSAR Images (Case Study: Doab-Samsami Basin in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province, Iran)

Applications of Synthetic Aperture Sensors (SAR) and particularly Differential Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (DInSAR) have provided new opportunities for detecting and monitoring of slow and even fast land deformations such as landslides and also updating their inventory maps. Employing this technique has made possible continuous detection and monitoring of small land movements with high precision over a wide spread area. In this study, two image series including 12 radar images with descending orbit acquired by ASAR sensor of ENVISAT satellite and 10 radar images with ascending orbit collected by PALAR sensor of ALOS satellite were selected and processed by the DInSAR method in order to detect landslides in the Doab-Samsami basin in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, Iran. Landslides detected in the study area cover over 5959 hec according to the processing of ASAR and PALSAR images collected between 2003 and 2011, whereas landslides detected by field studies cover over 5056 hec. Based on the results of the radar processing technique for detecting and mapping of landslides, the ASAR images can provide more details of slides due to their shorter wavelengths but the PALSAR images have comparatively greater penetration and lower incoherence due to the longer wavelengths. Results of the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) method show a well agreement between the landslides map provided by the DInSAR approach and field study. The area under the curve of receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve was estimated to be 0.95 with a standard deviation of 0.02 at 95% confidence level. The Cohen’s Kappa of 0.61 indicate relatively good conformity between classification of the detected landslide distribution in the study area based on the DInSAR method and field survey.

Differences of the high‐temperature corrosion of ferrite steel T92 caused by applied stresses and NaCl–Na2SO4 molten salts

AbstractThe corrosion behavior of T92 in the environment characterized by the applied stress and NaCl–Na2SO4 molten salts was studied by scanning electron microscope and energy dispersion spectroscopy. The dissolution and precipitation of oxides in molten salts resulted in changes in the elemental distribution in corrosion scales. Moreover, the applied stress was found to accelerate the outward diffusion of Cr causing fast deformation of protective oxides because of the easy diffusion path available. On the contrary, applied stresses also compacted the corrosion layers and enlarge the gaps between layers. These two opposite effects indicate that there should be a threshold stress for corrosion relief.

A novel method for characterization of Ultra Low Viscosity NCF layers using TCB for 3D Assembly

Abstract For die to wafer bonding of high-density interconnects and fine pitch microbumps developing and characterizing suitable underfill materials are required. In general, underfill serve to fill the spaces in-between microbumps for protection and reliability. Among the different types of underfill, Non-Conductive Film (NCF) has the advantages of fillet and volume control, and a built-in flux to aid wetting. However, challenges arise for thin dies and microbumps with fine pitches on film lamination, voiding, transparency, filler percentage, dicing compatibility and most importantly, deformation behavior and possibility to improve solder joint wetting. In a Die-to-Wafer D2W stacking with a Sn solder bump interconnect to Cu UBM, concern is high on the Cu pad oxidation due to the repeated TCB cycles that accelerate oxidation on neighboring dies. Process mitigation is needed to help reducing the oxidation. But even so, an NCF must have good embedded flux activation. Another main factor for an NCF to have efficient TCB process with good solder joint wetting, is the NCF deformation quality in which is a function of its viscosity. This parameter has direct impact on the deformation of solder bumps. High viscosity NCF would be difficult to deform, thus preventing solder contact to pad during TCB reflow temperature. High bond force is required and could lead to reduced alignment accuracy. Filler entrapment is also a subsequent concern for high filler loading, high viscosity NCF. For a low viscous NCF, careful attention in process characterization is needed in TCB with low bond force. Solder joint wetting is a problem with excessive squeeze-out due to fast and instantaneous deformation. With low viscosity, not only the bond force applied should be low, but the deformation behavior should also be understood to enable an effective NCF. We seek to demonstrate in this paper a creative methodology for Non-Conductive Film (NCF) material characterization, considering the factors of NCF viscosity, deformation, and solder squeeze-out. Characterizing NCF viscosity at fast TCB profiles is challenging considering deformation behavior of both the NCF itself and the solder bumps that shaped the solder squeeze-out and wetting. Furthermore, in this paper we use TCB tool position tracking to define the deformation curve of NCF film as a function of temperature and time at very fast profile of TCB. We use material viscosity curve as reference in relation to the actual deformation, and predict dynamic deformation based on Reynold’s equation within TCB profile duration. The experiments were performed with different heating ramp rates at target above Sn reflow of ~250C interface temperature. The deformation analysis is not limited to thin film sandwiched between parallel plates. Deformation test was performed on chips with and without microbumps and with rigid flat glass surface and its combinations. Deformation of underfill is recorded in the readout of TCB tool. As validation, we applied the optimized TCB process (force, temperature, and ramp rate) on a test vehicle with 20 and 40um pitch daisy chains and obtained close to 95% electrical yield with good joint and IMC formation. The cross-section SEM images show good wetting, revealing good activation of built-in flux when the optimized TCB profile was used.

Fast moving and deformational target tracking approach based on heterogeneous features fusion

Aiming at the unstable performance on fast-moving and deformational target tracking in current kernel correlation filter (KCF), an innovative approach based on heterogeneous features fusion is proposed in this paper. Firstly, a histogram of oriented gradient is utilized to cater for motion state change in complex surveillance background. Combined with a colour-free template as a novel heterogeneous feature, the proposed approach improves the tracking performance on the fast-moving target in KCF. Subsequently, the optimized spatial regularization and quadruple block method are implemented in order to solve the difficulties of scale change and boundary effect in the cyclic matrix. The simulation results indicate that the proposed approach has better precision and success rate than other popular tracking algorithms when dealing with both fast motion and deformation on the platform of the object tracking benchmark and actual traffic datasets.

Interaction and breakup of droplet pairs in a microchannel Y-junction

Droplets pushed through small channels can undergo breakup, which limits the throughput in microfluidic applications. We combine theory, numerical simulation, and experiments to explain and quantify the underlying physical breakup process for interacting droplet pairs in a Y-junction. Breakup is driven by spatially varying Young-Laplace pressures, which drive the formation of a neck and a subsequent Rayleigh-Plateau-like pinch-off in the leading droplet. Quantitative analysis suggests that fast interface deformations can dynamically generate Marangoni stresses that significantly impact the dynamics.

Fast and deep facial deformations

Film-quality characters typically display highly complex and expressive facial deformation. The underlying rigs used to animate the deformations of a character's face are often computationally expensive, requiring high-end hardware to deform the mesh at interactive rates. In this paper, we present a method using convolutional neural networks for approximating the mesh deformations of characters' faces. For the models we tested, our approximation runs up to 17 times faster than the original facial rig while still maintaining a high level of fidelity to the original rig. We also propose an extension to the approximation for handling high-frequency deformations such as fine skin wrinkles. While the implementation of the original animation rig depends on an extensive set of proprietary libraries making it difficult to install outside of an in-house development environment, our fast approximation relies on the widely available and easily deployed TensorFlow libraries. In addition to allowing high frame rate evaluation on modest hardware and in a wide range of computing environments, the large speed increase also enables interactive inverse kinematics on the animation rig. We demonstrate our approach and its applicability through interactive character posing and real-time facial performance capture.

An experimental link between fast noseleaf deformations and biosonar pulse dynamics in hipposiderid bats

Old-World leaf-nosed bats (Hipposideridae) are echolocating bats with peculiar emission-side dynamics where beamforming baffles ("noseleaves") that surround the points of ultrasound emission (nostrils) change shape while diffracting the outgoing biosonar pulses. While prior work with numerical and robotic models has suggested that these noseleaf deformations could have an impact on the output characteristics of the bat's biosonar system, testing the hypothesis that this is the case in bats remains a critical step to be taken. The work presented here has tested the hypothesis that the noseleaf dynamics in a species of hipposiderid bat (Pratt's roundleaf bat, H. pratti) leads to time-variant acoustical properties on the output side of the bats' biosonar emission system. The time-variant effects of the noseleaf motion could be detected even in the presence of other sources of variability by comparing the distribution of pulse energy over the angle at different points in time. Furthermore, a convolutional neural network was able to classify the noseleaf motion state based on microphone array recordings with 85.3% accuracy. These results hence demonstrate that these nose-emitting bats have access to a substrate for behavioral flexibility on the emission-side of their biosonar systems.