Les techniques d'évaluation de la composition tissulaire permettent de mieux comprendre les processus physiologiques et leur impact global sur l'état biologique des sujets expérimentaux. Le travail présenté dans ce manuscrit vise à concevoir un système de mesure intégré de spectroscopie de bioimpédance capable de mesurer un large champ de biomarqueurs sur de longues périodes (jusqu'à un an). Le système de mesure présenté peut être utilisé pour des applications de suivi à long terme de variables physiologiques en général. Néanmoins, les solutions présentées visent en particulier le poisson dans le cadre du projet POPSTAR qui vise à améliorer notre compréhension du comportement des poissons en analysant non seulement l’environnement dans lequel les poissons se déplacent et vivent mais aussi les poissons eux-mêmes. Après avoir identifié les défis de conception d'un système de mesure intégré par spectroscopie de bioimpédance, nous avons proposé une nouvelle architecture hybride permettant une spectroscopie rapide tout en maximisant la précision des mesures. Les blocs de génération du signal d'excitation sont critiques car leurs performances affectent l'ensemble des performances de l'architecture. La deuxième partie de cette recherche porte donc sur la conception et l’optimisation de la partie génération de l’architecture. En effet, nous avons amélioré la qualité des signaux de génération de stimuli pour les excitations mono-fréquentielle et multi-fréquentielle tout en proposant pour cela des implémentations sur puce de basse complexité. Dans la dernière partie de notre travail, la source de courant analogique qui transforme les stimuli en un courant d'excitation est discuté. Pour ce bloc, nous avons proposé une nouvelle topologie analogique utilisant un version améliorée du cascode régulé et une compensation de rétroaction du mode commun indépendante des variations du processus. Le premier prototype de puce intégrée embarquant les blocs critiques de l'architecture de mesure de bioimpédance a été conçu et simulé avec un process CMOS 0.18 µm de AMS fonctionnant sous une tension d'alimentation de 1.8 V. / Tissue composition assessment techniques are used to help better comprehend physiological processes and their overall impact on the biological state of the experiments subjects. The research presented in this manuscript aims to design a bioimpedance spectroscopy integrated measurement system capable of measuring a wide range of biomarkers over long periods of time (up to one year). The presented measurement system can be used for physiological variables long time monitoring applications in general. Nevertheless, the presented solutions target in particular fish species in the context of the POPSTAR project which aims to enhance our understanding of fish behavior by analyzing not only the environment in which fish travel and live but also the fish themselves. After identifying the design challenges of a bioimpedance spectroscopy integrated measurement system, we have proposed a novel hybrid architecture providing fast bioimpedance spectroscopy while maximizing the measurement precision. As the signal generation blocks are critical and their performances affect the whole architecture performances. The second part of this research focuses on the design and optimization of the signal generation part of the architecture. Indeed, we have enhanced the stimuli generation signals quality for single tone and multitone excitations while proposing for this blocks low complexity on-chip implementations. In the last part of our work the current driver that transforms the voltage stimuli into an excitation current is discussed. A novel analog topology using an improved regulated cascode and a common-mode feedback compensation independent of process variations is presented. The first chip prototype implementing the critical blocks of the bioimpedance integrated measurement architecture has been designed and simulated in a 0.18 µm AMS (Austria MicroSystems) CMOS process operating at 1.8 V power supply.

abstract: In the current photovoltaic (PV) industry, the O&M (operations and maintenance) personnel in the field primarily utilize three approaches to identify the underperforming or defective modules in a string: i) EL (electroluminescence) imaging of all the modules in the string; ii) IR (infrared) thermal imaging of all the modules in the string; and, iii) current-voltage (I-V) curve tracing of all the modules in the string. In the first and second approaches, the EL images are used to detect the modules with broken cells, and the IR images are used to detect the modules with hotspot cells, respectively. These two methods may identify the modules with defective cells only semi-qualitatively, but not accurately and quantitatively. The third method, I-V curve tracing, is a quantitative method to identify the underperforming modules in a string, but it is an extremely time consuming, labor-intensive, and highly ambient conditions dependent method. Since the I-V curves of individual modules in a string are obtained by disconnecting them individually at different irradiance levels, module operating temperatures, angle of incidences (AOI) and air-masses/spectra, all these measured curves are required to be translated to a single reporting condition (SRC) of a single irradiance, single temperature, single AOI and single spectrum. These translations are not only time consuming but are also prone to inaccuracy due to inherent issues in the translation models. Therefore, the current challenges in using the traditional I-V tracers are related to: i) obtaining I-V curves simultaneously of all the modules and substrings in a string at a single irradiance, operating temperature, irradiance spectrum and angle of incidence due to changing weather parameters and sun positions during the measurements, ii) safety of field personnel when disconnecting and reconnecting of cables in high voltage systems (especially field aged connectors), and iii) enormous time and hardship for the test personnel in harsh outdoor climatic conditions. In this thesis work, a non-contact I-V (NCIV) curve tracing tool has been integrated and implemented to address the above mentioned three challenges of the traditional I-V tracers. This work compares I-V curves obtained using a traditional I-V curve tracer with the I-V curves obtained using a NCIV curve tracer for the string, substring and individual modules of crystalline silicon (c-Si) and cadmium telluride (CdTe) technologies. The NCIV curve tracer equipment used in this study was integrated using three commercially available components: non-contact voltmeters (NCV) with voltage probes to measure the voltages of substrings/modules in a string, a hall sensor to measure the string current and a DAS (data acquisition system) for simultaneous collection of the voltage data obtained from the NCVs and the current data obtained from the hall sensor. This study demonstrates the concept and accuracy of the NCIV curve tracer by comparing the I-V curves obtained using a traditional capacitor-based tracer and the NCIV curve tracer in a three-module string of c-Si modules and of CdTe modules under natural sunlight with uniform light conditions on all the modules in the string and with partially shading one or more of the modules in the string to simulate and quantitatively detect the underperforming module(s) in a string. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Engineering 2020