Mixed-technology Systems Research Articles

Evaluation of efficiency of ALSC floating-sliding base-isolation system based on shake table test and floor response spectra

The ALSC base isolation system was investigated by testing a church model to the scale 1/3.5 on the two-component shaking table at the IZIIS’ Laboratory, Skopje, Macedonia. The investigation was performed within the frames of the European FP6 project PROHITECH, related to seismic protection of historical buildings by innovative and reversible mixed technology systems. This system was originally developed in 2001 and applied on a model of a steel reservoir. The church model was tested twice: with an active base-isolation system and fixed to the base. The effectiveness of the base-isolation system was investigated by the transfer function/floor response spectra technique. Special software for calculation of the transfer functions and floor response spectra based on experimental data, referred as “SPECTRA”, was developed by the authors of this paper. The main objective of the investigations presented in this paper was evaluation of the effectiveness of the ALSC floating sliding base-isolation system by using the Response Spectra approach. Comparison of the Floor Response Spectra was done for two cases a fixed base model and a base-isolated model. The base response spectrum was calculated from the input time history of the Montenegro earthquake compressed 3.5 times (geometry scale of the model). The Transfer Functions and the Floor response Spectra at a particular level were calculated from the Cross Power Spectra (CPS) and the Auto-Power Spectra. The obtained results showed that the effect of the base-isolation system was considerable, with a low transmissibility of energy from shake table to the model.

Modelling tools built upon the hardware description language foundation

Hardware description languages (HDLs), mainly Verilog and VHDL including their analogue/mixed-signal (AMS) extensions, represent a significant investment by the electronic design automation community. HDL technology promises productivity advances, such as a medium for intellectual property exchange, model portability, model productivity, improved design collaboration, top-down design for AMS, AMS synthesis and rich mixed-level, mixed-signal simulation for improved simulation throughput. Modelling tools represent a step towards completion of the dwelling electronic design automation community's seek to build upon the HDL foundation. One such environment of tools described here is Paragon. Paragon is described and demonstrated on both behavioural models using multiple HDLs and compact device modelling applications. The various processes and modelling methodologies that are useful in designing and modelling complex mixed-signal circuits and systems are explored. The model creation processes of mixed-signal and mixed-technology systems at various levels of abstraction and hierarchy are described. Creation of compact behavioural models at a more abstract and language-independent level using these modelling methodologies is illustrated.

A behavioral model development methodology for microwave components and integration in VHDL-AMS

The new generation of system-on-chip (SoC) incorporates digital, analogue, radiofrequency (RF)/microwave and mixed-signal components. Therefore, novel design methodologies must be developed to direct the design of these mixed-technology systems, which will have to include accurate behavioral libraries of devices and processes. Thus, this paper describes a behavioral modeling approach which generates accurate empirical models for RF/microwave devices and that can be easily integrated into a VHDL-AMS simulator. This approach is applied to a microwave tunable phase shifter and it is illustrated by the development of a VHDL-AMS model library for RF/microwave applications.

Microelectronic Circuit Test Engineering Laboratories with Programmable Logic

A use for programmable logic is presented targeting microelectronic circuit test engineering education. These devices offer strengths in cost, time and flexibility in an educational environment. The rationale for this work is to support electronic hardware design, fabrication and test for mixed-signal integrated circuits typically used in mixed-technology systems.

Materials and devices toward three-dimensional integration

Abstract It has been shown that the apparent benefits of a two-layer stacked SOI system, i.e. packing density and speed improvements, are less than could be expected in the context of a VLSI requirement [1]. In this project the stacked SOI system has been identified as having major application in the realization of integrated, mixed technology systems. Zone-melting-recrystallization (ZMR) with lasers and electron beams have been used to produce device quality SOI material and a small test-bed circuit has been designed as a demonstration of the feasibility of this approach.