The estimation and analysis of signals that have polynomial phase and constant or time-varying amplitudes with the addititve noise is considered in this dissertation.Much work has been undertaken on this problem over the last decade or so, and there are a number of estimation schemes available. The fundamental problem when trying to estimate the parameters of these type of signals is the nonlinear characterstics of the signal, which lead to computationally difficulties when applying standard techniques such as maximum likelihood and least squares. When considering only the phase data, we also encounter the well known problem of the unobservability of the true noise phase curve. The methods that are currently most popular involve differencing in phase followed by regression, or nonlinear transformations. Although these methods perform quite well at high signal to noise ratios, their performance worsens at low signal to noise, and there may be significant bias. One of the biggest problems to efficient estimation of these models is that the majority of methods rely on sequential estimation of the phase coefficients, in that the highest-order parameter is estimated first, its contribution removed via demodulation, and the same procedure applied to estimation of the next parameter and so on. This is clearly an issue in that errors in estimation of high order parameters affect the ability to estimate the lower order parameters correctly. As a result, stastical analysis of the parameters is also difficult. In thie dissertation, we aim to circumvent the issues of bias and sequential estiamtion by considering the issue of full parameter iterative refinement techniques. ie. given a possibly biased initial estimate of the phase coefficients, we aim to create computationally efficient iterative refinement techniques to produce stastically efficient estimators at low signal to noise ratios. Updating will be done in a multivariable manner to remove inaccuracies and biases due to sequential procedures. Stastical analysis and extensive simulations attest to the performance of the schemes that are presented, which include likelihood, least squares and bayesian estimation schemes. Other results of importance to the full estimatin problem, namely when there is error in the time variable, the amplitude is not constant, and when the model order is not known, are also condsidered.

This work focuses on the evaluation of the feasibility to employ silicon (Si) nanowire based parallel arrays of Schottky-barrier field effect transistors (SB-FETs) as transducers for potentiometric biosensors and their overall performance as building blocks for novel functional electronics. Nanowire parallel arrays of SB-FETs were produced and electrically characterized during this work. Nominally undoped Si nanowires with mean diameter of 20nm were synthesized by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) driven bottom-up growth and subsequently transferred via a printing process to Si/SiO2 chip substrates. Thereby, dense parallel aligned nanowire arrays are created. After dry oxidation of the nanowires, standard photolithography and deposition methods are employed to contact several hundred nanowires with interdigitated Ni electrodes in parallel. A silicidation step is used to produce axially intruded Ni-silicide (metallic) phases with a very abrupt interface to the Si (semiconducting) segment. Acting as front gate dielectric, the chip surface is entirely covered by an Al2O3 layer. For sensor applications, this layer further serves as electrical isolation of the electrodes and protects them from corrosion in electrolytes. Fabricated devices are part of the SOI (Si on insulator) transistor family with top (front) and back gate and exhibit ambipolar rectifying behavior. The top gate exhibits omega geometry with a 20nm thin Al2O3 dielectric, the back gate planar geometry with a 400nm thick SiO2 dielectric. The influence of both gates on the charge transport is summarized in the statistical analysis of transfer and output characteristic for 7 different lengths (for each 20 devices) of the Si conduction channel. A nonlinear scaling of on-currents and transconductance with channel length is revealed. Off-currents are influenced from both p- and n-type conduction at the same time. Increasing lateral electric fields (LEF) lead to a decline of suppression capability of both p- and n-currents by a single gate. This is reflected in a deteriorated swing and higher off-current towards decreasing channel lengths (increasing LEF). However, by individual gating of Schottky junction and channel, p- and n-type currents can be controlled individually. Both charge carrier types, p and n, can be suppressed efficiently at the same time leading to low off-currents and high on/off current ratio for all investigated channel lengths. This is achieved by a combined top and back double gate architecture, for which the back gate controls the Schottky junction resistance. It is demonstrated that a fixed high Schottky junction serial resistance, severely impairs the transconductance. However, the transconductance can be significantly increased by lowering this resistance via the back gate, enhancing the transducer performance significantly. Al2O3 covered SB-FETs were employed as pH sensors to evaluate their performance and signal to noise ratio (SNR). Current modulation per pH was observed to be directly proportional to the transconductance. The transistor related signal to noise ratio (SNR) is thus proportional to the transconductance to current noise ratio. Device noise was characterized and found to limit the SNR already below the peak transconductance regime. Statistical analysis showed that the nanowire SB-FET transconductance and noise both scale proportional with the current. Therefore, the SNR was found to be independent on the nanowire channel lengths under investigation. The high process yield of nanowire SB-FET parallel array fabrication close to hundred percent enables this platform to be used for simple logic and biosensor elements. Because of the low fabrication temperatures needed, the foundation is laid to produce complementary logic with undoped Si on flexible substrates. For previously reported results, the presence of Schottky junctions severely impaired the transconductance, restricting the applicability of SB-FETs as transducers. This work shows, that an electric decoupling of the Schottky junction can reduce these restrictions, making SB-FETs feasible for sensor applications. / Diese Dissertation ist der Bewertung von Silizium (Si) Nanodraht basierten Parallelschaltungen von Schottky-Barrieren-Feld-Effekt-Transistoren (SB-FETs) als Wandler für potentiometrische Biosensoren und deren generelle Leistungsfähigkeit als Bauelement neuartiger funktioneller Elektronik gewidmet. In dieser Arbeit wurden Parallelschaltungen von Nanodraht SB-FETs hergestellt und elektrisch charakterisiert. Nominell undotierte Si Nanodrähte mit durchschnittlichem Durchmesser von 20nm wurden mittels chemischer Dampfphasenabscheidung (CVD) synthetisiert und anschließend durch einen Druckprozess auf ein Si/SiO2 Chip-Substrat transferiert. Damit wurden dicht gepackte, parallel ausgerichtete Nanodraht Schichten erzeugt. Nach Trockenoxidation der Nanodrähte wurden diese mit Standard Lithographie und Abscheidungsmethoden mit interdigitalen Nickel (Ni) Elektroden als Parallelschaltung kontaktiert. Durch einen Temperprozess bilden sich axial eindiffundierte metallische Ni-Silizid-Phasen, mit einer sehr abrupten Grenzfläche zum halbleitenden Si Segments des Nanodrahts. Die Chipoberfläche wird vollständig mit einer Al2O3-Schicht bedeckt, welche als Frontgate-Dielektrikum oder als elektrische Isolation und Korrosionsschutzschicht für Elektroden in Elektrolytlösungen im Falle der Sensoranwendungen dient. Die hier gezeigten Bauelemente sind Teil der SOI (Si on insulator) Transistoren-Familie mit Top- (Front) und Backgate und zeigen ein ambipolares Schaltverhalten. Die Topgates besitzen eine Omega-Geometrie mit 20nm dickem Al2O3 Dielektrikum, das Backgate eine planare Geometrie mit 400nm dickem SiO2 Dielektrikum. Der Einfluss beider Gates auf den Ladungstransport ist in einer statistischen Analyse der Transfer- und Output-Charaktersitiken für 7 unterschiedliche Si-Leitungskanallängen zusammengefasst. Eine nichtlineare Skalierung von Strom und Transkonduktanz mit Leitungskanallänge wurde aufgedeckt. Die Ströme im Aus-Zustand des Transistors sind durch das Vorhandensein gleichzeitiger p- als auch n-Typ Leitung bestimmt. Die Zunahme lateraler elektrischer Felder (LEF) führt zu einem Verlust des gleichzeitigen Ausschaltvermögens von p- und n-Strömen bei Ansteuerung mit einem einzelnen Gate. Dies äußert sich durch einen graduell verschlechterten Swing und höheren Strom im Aus-Zustand bei verringerter Leitungskanallänge (gleichbedeutend mit erhöhten LEF). Durch eine getrennte Ansteuerung von Schottky-Kontakt und Leitungskanal lassen sich p- and n-Leitung jedoch unabhängig voneinander kontrollieren. Beide Ladungsträgertypen können so simultan effizient unterdrückt werden, was zu einem geringen Strom im Aus-Zustand und einem hohen An/Aus- Stromverhältnis für alle untersuchten Kanallängen führt. Dies wird durch eine Gatearchitektur mit kombiniertem Top- und Backgate erreicht, bei der das Backgate den Ladungstransport durch den Schottky-Kontakt und dessen Serienwiderstand kontrolliert. Es wird gezeigt, dass ein konstant hoher Schottky-Kontakt bedingter Serienwiderstand die Transkonduktanz erheblich vermindert. Jedoch kann die Transkonduktanz im höchsten Maße durch eine Herabsetzung des Serienwiderstandes durch das Backgate gesteigert werden. Dies erhöht die Leistungsfähigkeit des SB-FET als Wandler deutlich. Al2O3 oberflächenbeschichtete SB-FETs wurden als pH-Sensoren erprobt, um deren Tauglichkeit und Signal-zu-Rausch-Verhältnis (SNR) zu evaluieren. Die Strommodulation pro pH-Wert konnte als direkt proportional zur Transkonduktanz bestätigt werden. Das Transistor bedingte SNR ist daher proportional zum Verhältnis von Transkonduktanz und Stromrauschen. Bei der Analyse des Transistorrauschens wurde festgestellt, dass dieses das SNR bereits bei einer niedrigeren Transkonduktanz als der maximal Möglichen limitiert. Eine statistische Auswertung zeigte, dass sowohl SB-FET Transkonduktanz als auch Stromrauschen proportional zu dem Transistorstrom skalieren. Somit ist deren Verhältnis unabhängig von der Nanodraht-Leitungskanallänge, im hier untersuchten Rahmen. Die geringe Ausschuss bei der Fabrikation der Nanodraht SB-FET-Parallelschaltungen ermöglicht eine Nutzung dieser Plattform für simple Logik und Biosensorelemente. Durch die geringen Prozesstemperaturen wurde die Grundlage geschaffen, komplementäre Logik mit undotiertem Si auf flexiblen Substraten zu fertigen. Vorangegangene Resultate zeigte eine verminderte Transkonduktanz durch die Präsenz von Schottky-Barrieren, was die Anwendbarkeit von SB-FETs als Wandler einschränkt. Diese Arbeit zeigt, dass eine elekrtische Entkopplung der Schottky-Kontakte zu einer Aufhebung dieser Beschränkung führen kann und somit den Einsatz von SB-FETs als praktikable Wandler für Sensoranwendungen zulässt.

Durant la dernière décade, les radars millimétriques en bande W (75 - 110 GHz) pour les applications civiles que ce soit dans le domaine de l'aide à la conduite ou de la sécurité. La maturité de ces systèmes et les exigences accrues en termes d'application, orientent actuellement les recherches vers l'insertion de fonctions permettant l'identification. Ainsi, des systèmes d'imagerie radar ont été développés, notamment à l'aide d'imagerie qualitative (SAR). Les premiers résultats sont très prometteurs, cependant, afin de reconstruire les propriétés électromagnétiques des objets, il faut travailler de manière quantitative. De nombreux travaux ont déjà été conduits en ondes centimétriques, mais aucun système d'imagerie quantitative n'existe, à notre connaissance, en gamme millimétrique. L'objectif du travail présenté dans ce manuscrit est de poser les bases d'un système d'imagerie quantitative en gamme millimétrique et de le comparer à l'imagerie radar de systèmes développés en collaboration avec l'Université d'Ulm (Allemagne). L'ensemble des résultats obtenus valide le processus développé pour d'imagerie quantitative. Les recherches doivent être poursuivies. D'une part le système de mesure doit évoluer vers un vrai système multi-incidences/multivues. D'autre part, le cas 2D-TE doit être implémenté afin de pouvoir traiter un objet 2D quelconque dans n'importe quelle polarisation. Enfin, les mesures à partir de systèmes radar réels doivent être poursuivies, en particulier pour rendre exploitables les mesures des coefficients de transmission. Ces dernières sont indispensables si l'on veut un jour appliquer les algorithmes d'inversion à des mesures issues de systèmes radar. / In the last decade, microwave and millimeter-wave systems have gained importance in civil and security applications. Due to an increasing maturity and availability of circuits and components, these systems are getting more compact while being less expensive. Furthermore, quantitative imaging has been conducted at lower frequencies using computational intensive inverse problem algorithms. Due to the ill-posed character of the inverse problem, these algorithms are, in general, very sensitive to noise: the key to their successful application to experimental data is the precision of the measurement system. Only a few research teams investigate systems for imaging in the W-band. In this manuscript such a system is presented, designed to provide scattered field data to quantitative reconstruction algorithms. This manuscript is divided into six chapters. Chapter 2 describes the theory to compute numerically the scattered fields of known objects. In Chapter 3, the W-band measurement setup in the anechoic chamber is shown. Preliminary measurement results are analyzed. Relying on the measurement results, the error sources are studied and corrected by post-processing. The final results are used for the qualitative reconstruction of all three targets of interest and to image quantitatively the small cylinder. The reconstructed images are compared in detail in Chapter 4. Close range imaging has been investigated using a vector analyzer and a radar system. This is described in Chapter 5, based on a future application, which is the detection of FOD on airport runways. The conclusion is addressed in Chapter 6 and some future investigations are discussed.

De nouveaux concepts d’imagerie permettent aux systèmes optiques d’être plus compacts et plus performants. Parmi ces nouvelles techniques, les systèmes d’imagerie hybrides par codage de pupille allient un système optique comprenant un masque de phase et un traitement numérique. La fonction de phase implantée sur le masque rend l’image insensible à un défaut du système optique, qui peut être une aberration ou de la défocalisation. Cet avantage est obtenu au prix d’une déformation connue de l’image qui est ensuite corrigée par un traitement numérique.L’étude des propriétés de ces systèmes a été effectuée en cherchant à augmenter la profondeur de champ d’un système d’imagerie. Un gain sur ce paramètre permet déjà d’envisager le relâchement de contraintes de conception optique telles que la courbure de champ, la défocalisation thermique, le chromatisme… Dans ces techniques d’imagerie, la prise en compte du bruit du capteur constitue l’un des paramètres critiques pour le choix et l’utilisation de méthodes de traitement d’image.Les travaux menés durant cette thèse ont permis de proposer une approche originale de conception conjointe de la fonction de phase du masque et de l’algorithme de restauration d’image. Celle-ci est basée sur un critère de rapport signal à bruit de l’image finale. Contrairement aux approches connues, ce critère montre qu’il n’est pas nécessaire d’obtenir une stricte invariance de la fonction de transfert du système optique. Les paramètres des fonctions de phase optimisés grâce à ce critère sont sensiblement différents de ceux usuellement proposés et conduisent à une amélioration significative de la qualité de l’image.Cette approche de conception optique a été validée expérimentalement sur une caméra thermique non refroidie. Un masque de phase binaire qui a été mis en œuvre en association avec un traitement numérique temps réel implémenté sur une carte GPU a permis d’augmenter la profondeur de champ de cette caméra d’un facteur 3. Compte-tenu du niveau de bruit important introduit par l’utilisation d’un capteur bolométrique, la bonne qualité des images obtenues après traitement démontre l’intérêt de l’approche de conception conjointe appliquée à l’imagerie hybride par codage de pupille. / New imaging techniques allow better and smaller systems. Among these new techniques, hybrid imaging systems with wavefront coding includes an optical system with a phase mask and a processing step. The phase function of the mask makes the system insensitive to a fault of the optical system, such as an aberration or a defocus. The price of this advantage is a deformation of the image acquired by a sensor, which is then processed. The study of the properties of these hybrid imaging systems has been completed by increasing the depth of field of an imaging system, which allows to relax some design constraints such as field curvature, thermal defocus, chromaticism… In these imaging techniques, the consideration the noise of the sensor is one the critical parameters when choosing the image processing method.The work performed during this thesis allowed to proposed an original approach for the cross-conception of the phase function of the mask and the processing step. This approach is based on a signal-to-noise criterion. Unlike known approaches, this criterion shows that a strict insensitivity of the modulation transfer function of the optics is not required. The parameters of the phase functions optimized thanks to this criterion are noticeably different from those usually proposed and lead to a significant increase of the image quality.This cross-conception approach has been validated experimentally on an uncooled thermal camera. A binary phase mask associated with a real-time processing implemented on a GPU allowed to increase the depth of field of this camera by a factor 3. Considering the important level of noise introduced by the use of a bolometric sensor, the good quality of the processed image shows the interest of the cross-conception for hybrid imaging system with wavefront coding.

Introdução: O ruído é um dos principais agentes de poluição ambiental, que em intensidades elevadas, poderá causar a perda auditiva induzida por níveis de pressão sonora elevadas (PAINPSE). A PAINPSE é o segundo tipo de perda auditiva neurossensorial mais frequente, e considerada uma das principais doenças ocupacionais. Para evitar os prejuízos da exposição ao ruído ocupacional, legislações determinam o monitoramento e o desenvolvimento de ações para reduzir os efeitos da exposição, sendo o uso de dispositivos de proteção auditiva (DPA) a mais empregada. Contudo é comum que o trabalhador relate dificuldades para se comunicar com o DPA, o que pode induzi-lo ao uso inadequado. Os estudos já realizados apresentam discordâncias sobre os efeitos do DPA para a inteligibilidade da fala, além de serem poucos os que compararam participantes com perdas auditivas com normo-ouvintes. Objetivos: Avaliar a inteligibilidade de fala em trabalhadores expostos a ruído durante o uso de DPA. Métodos: Trata-se de um estudo transversal, aprovado pelo Comitê de Ética em Pesquisa da instituição nº 130/14, com amostra de 36 participantes, todos do sexo masculino e expostos ao ruído. Foram divididos em grupo normo-ouvintes (G1), com 20 participantes e com perda auditiva (G2), com 16 participantes. Todos os participantes realizaram avaliação da inteligibilidade de fala em campo acústico, utilizando listas de monossílabas e sentenças, em situações de uso do DPA no silêncio e no ruído e sem o uso do DPA no ruído. Resultados: Na avaliação da inteligibilidade de fala com DPA utilizando as monossílabas, ambos os grupos apresentaram porcentagens de acertos superiores à 95% na situação de silêncio. Na presença do ruído com o DPA, não foi detectado efeito de interação envolvendo grupo (p>=0,106) e nem efeito de grupo (p=0,182), mas houve efeito de interação entre intensidade de fala e relação sinal/ruído (S/R) (p=0,006). Na avaliação da inteligibilidade de fala no ruído sem o DPA, foi detectado efeito de interação entre uso do DPA e relação S/R (p=0,010) sobre a média das porcentagens de acertos. Na avaliação com listas de sentenças, a porcentagem de acertos com DPA foram superiores a 98% no silêncio; contudo, no ruído houve piora, com efeito de interação entre intensidade de fala e relação S/R (p=0,010) e entre grupo e relação S/R (p=0,039). Na comparação do uso/não uso do DPA, houve efeito de interação entre uso do DPA e as relações S/R (p=0,009) sobre a média das porcentagens de acertos. Conclusões: Para ambos os grupos, houve piora da inteligibilidade de fala com o aumento da intensidade do ruído; contudo, a dificuldade foi maior para o G2. Na comparação das situações com/sem o uso do DPA, o uso dificultou a inteligibilidade de fala, mas não houve diferença significante entre as situações. Por fim, ressalta-se a importância de realizar mais estudos dos efeitos do DPA na comunicação, além de inserir nas avaliações ocupacionais testes que avaliam a fala no ruído, para determinar as dificuldades que podem surgir no ambiente ocupacional, e assim desenvolver medidas que beneficiem os trabalhadores que necessitam se comunicar durante as atividades laborais / Introduction: Noise is one of the main agents of environmental pollution, and at high intensities, it may provoke noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). NIHL is the second most frequent type of sensorineural hearing loss and it is considered one of the main occupational diseases. In order to avoid the effects of the exposition to occupational noise, legislation determines the monitoring and development of actions to reduce the effects of such exposure and one of the most applied measure is the mandatory use of hearing protection devices (HPD). However, workers often report difficulties to communicate when using the HPD, what may induce them to use it improperly. Previous studies showed divergences between the effects of HPD on speech intelligibility; besides, few studies compared participants with hearing loss to those with normal hearing. Purpose: To assess speech intelligibility of workers exposed to noise during the use of HPD. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study, approved by the Institution\'s Ethics Committee (nº 130/14) and counted on a sample of 36 participants, all males and exposed to noise. They were distributed into a normal hearing group (G1), with 20 participants and hearing loss group (G2), with 16 participants. All participants were submitted to an assessment of speech intelligibility in free field, using monosyllable and sentence lists, when using the HPD in silence and noise situation, and also without the use of HPD in noise. Results: In the assessment of speech intelligibility with HPD using the monosyllables, both groups presented percentages of correct answers above 95%. In the presence of noise with HPD, there was no interaction effect involving group (p>=0.106) or group effect (p=0.182), but there was found an interaction effect between speech intensity and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) (p=0.006). In the assessment of speech intelligibility in noise without HPD, an interaction effect between HPD use and SNR (p=0.010) was detected over the mean percentage of correct answers. In the evaluation with lists of sentences, the percentage of correct answers with HPD were superior to 98% in the silence; however, in noise, there was a decrease on the interaction effect between speech intensity and SNR (p = 0.010) and between group and SNR (p = 0.039). In the comparison with/without use of HPD, there was found an interaction effect between hearing protection use and SNR (p = 0.009) on the mean percentage of correct answers. Conclusions: For both groups, it was noticed that speech intelligibility decrease with the increasing of noise intensity; nevertheless, the difficulty was greater for the group with hearing loss. In the comparison of situations with and without the use of HPD, its use made speech intelligibility more challenging, but no significant difference between the situations was found. Finally, it is important to highlight the importance of further studies regarding the effects of HPD on communication and, besides, inserting speech-in-noise tests in occupational examination in order to determine the difficulties that may arise in the occupational environment and thus, develop measures that benefits the workers who need communicate during their labor activities

Submitted by Kelren Mota (kelrenlima@ufpa.br) on 2018-06-14T18:39:25Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Dissertacao_MetodologiaPredicaoPerda.pdf: 3699343 bytes, checksum: 3b43522af593666187f8aef07927421f (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Kelren Mota (kelrenlima@ufpa.br) on 2018-06-14T18:39:41Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Dissertacao_MetodologiaPredicaoPerda.pdf: 3699343 bytes, checksum: 3b43522af593666187f8aef07927421f (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-06-14T18:39:41Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Dissertacao_MetodologiaPredicaoPerda.pdf: 3699343 bytes, checksum: 3b43522af593666187f8aef07927421f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-02-27 / Esta dissertação apresenta uma metodologia que visa auxiliar o planejamento de sistemas de redes sem fio indoor, que requerem o conhecimento prévio dos ambientes nos quais serão implantados. Assim, é necessário precisão na análise do sinal por meio de uma abordagem empírica estatística, que leva em consideração alguns fatores que influenciam na propagação do sinal indoor: arquitetura dos prédios; disposição de móveis no interior dos compartimentos; números de paredes e pisos de diversos materiais, além do espalhamento das ondas de rádio. A metodologia adotada é baseada em medições com uma abordagem cross-layer, que demonstra o impacto da camada física em relação à camada de aplicação, com o objetivo de prever o comportamento da métrica de Qualidade de Experiência (QoE), chamada de Peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR), em transmissões de vídeo em 4k em redes sem fio 802.11ac, no ambiente indoor. Para tanto, foram realizadas medições, que demonstram como o sinal/vídeo se degrada no ambiente estudado, sendo possível modelar esta degradação por meio de uma técnica de inteligência computacional, chamada Redes Neurais Artificiais (RNA), na qual são inseridos parâmetros de entrada como, por exemplo, a distância do transmissor ao receptor e o número de paredes atravessadas a fim de predizer perda de propagação e perda de PSNR. Para avaliar a capacidade de predição dos métodos propostos, foram obtidos os valores dos erros Root Mean Sqare (RMS) entre os dados medidos e os preditos, pelo os métodos de predição perda de propagação e perda de PSNR, sendo os valores respectivos 2,17 dB e 2,81 dB. / This dissertation presents a methodology that aims to assist the planning of indoor wireless network systems, which require prior knowledge of the environments in which they will be deployed. Thus, accurate signal analysis is necessary by means of a statistical empirical approach, which takes into account some factors that influence the propagation of the indoor signal: architecture of the buildings; arrangement of furniture inside the compartments; numbers of walls and floors of various materials, and the spread of radio waves. The methodology adopted is based on measurements with a cross-layer approach, which demonstrates the impact of the physical layer in relation to the application layer, in order to predict the behavior of the Quality of Experience (QoE) metric, called Peak signal- to-noise ratio (PSNR), in 4K video streams on 802.11ac wireless networks in the indoor environment. In order to do so, measurements were performed, which demonstrate how the signal / video degrades in the studied environment. It is possible to model this degradation by means of a computational intelligence technique, called Artificial Neural Networks (RNA), in which input parameters are inserted as, for example, the distance from the transmitter to the receiver and the number of walls crossed in order to predict loss of propagation and loss of PSNR. In order to evaluate the predictive capacity of the proposed methods, the values of the Root Mean Sqare (RMS) errors between the measured and predicted data were obtained by the prediction methods loss of propagation and loss of PSNR, with respective values of 2.17 dB and 2.81 dB.

Mes travaux de thèse portent sur l’application de l’imagerie fUS (functional ultrasound imaging) à l’imagerie cérébrale préclinique chez le petit animal. Le but était de transformer cette technique d’imagerie cérébrale récente en un véritable outil de quantification de l’état cérébral. Les objectifs principaux ont été de démontrer la faisabilité de l’imagerie fUS chez le petit animal non anesthésié ainsi que de passer du modèle rat au modèle souris - modèle de choix en imagerie préclinique en neurosciences - de surcroît de façon non invasive. J’ai tout d’abord mis au point une nouvelle séquence d’imagerie ultrasonore ultrarapide (Multiplane Wave imaging), permettant d’améliorer le rapport signal-à-bruit des images grâce à l’augmentation virtuelle de l’amplitude du signal émis, sans diminuer la cadence ultrarapide d’acquisition. Dans un deuxième temps j’ai démontré la possibilité d’imager le cerveau de la souris et du jeune rat anesthésiés par échographie Doppler ultrarapide, de manière transcrânienne et complètement non invasive, sans chirurgie ni injection d’agents de contraste. J’ai ensuite mis au point un montage expérimental, une séquence ultrasonore et un protocole expérimental permettant de réaliser de l’imagerie fUS de manière minimalement invasive chez des souris éveillées et libres de leurs mouvements. Enfin, j’ai démontré la possibilité d’utiliser le fUS pour étudier la connectivité fonctionnelle du cerveau au repos (sans stimulus) chez des souris éveillées ou sédatées. L’imagerie fUS et la combinaison « modèle souris » + « minimalement invasif » + « animal éveillé » + « connectivité fonctionnelle » constituent un outil précieux pour la communauté des neuroscientifiques travaillant sur des modèles animaux pathologiques ou de nouvelles molécules pharmacologiques / My work focuses on the application of fUS (functional ultrasound) imaging to preclinical brain imaging in small animals. The goal of my thesis was to turn this recent vascular brain imaging technique into a quantifying tool for cerebral state. The main objectives were to demonstrate the feasibility of fUS imaging in the non-anaesthetized small rodents and to move from rat model imaging to mouse model imaging –most used model for preclinical studies in neuroscience-, while developing the least invasive imaging protocols. First, I have developed a new ultrafast ultrasonic imaging sequence (Multiplane Wave imaging), improving the image signal-to-noise ratio by virtually increasing emitted signal amplitude, without reducing the ultrafast framerate. Then, I have demonstrated the possibility to use ultrafast Doppler ultrasound imaging to image both the mouse brain and the young rat brain, non-invasively and through the intact skull, without surgery or contrast agents injection. Next, I have developed an experimental setup, an ultrasound sequence and an experimental protocol to perform minimally invasive fUS imaging in awake and freely-moving mice. Finally, I have demonstrated the possibility to use fUS imaging to study the functional connectivity of the brain in a resting state in awake or sedated mice, still in a transcranial and minimally invasive way. fUS imaging and the combination of "mouse model" + "minimally invasive" + "awake animal" + "functional connectivity" represent a very promising tool for the neuroscientist community working on pathological animal models or new pharmacological molecules

Processing of broadband signals induced on an antenna array using a tapped delay line filter and a set of steering delays has two problems. Firstly one needs to manipulate large matrices to estimate the filter coefficients. Secondly the use of steering delays is not only cumbersome but implementation errors cause loss of system performance. This thesis looks at both of these problems and presents elegant solutions by developing and studying a design method referred to as the DFT method, which does not require steering delays and is computationally less demanding compared to existing methods. Specifically the thesis studies and compares the performance of a time domain element space beamformer using the proposed method and that using an existing method, and develops the DFT method when the processor is implemented in partitioned form. The study presented in the thesis shows that the processors using the DFT method are robust to look direction errors and require less computation than that using the existing method for comparable performance. The thesis further introduces a broadband beamformer design which does not require any steering delays between the sensors and the tapped delay line section as is presently the case. It has the capability of steering the array in an arbitrary direction with a specified frequency response in the look direction while canceling unwanted uncorrelated interferences. The thesis presents and compares the performance of a number of techniques to synthesize an antenna pattern of a broadband array. These techniques are designed to produce isolated point nulls as well as broad sector nulls and to eliminate the need for the steering delays. Two of the pattern synthesis techniques presented in the thesis allow optimization against unwanted interferences in unknown directions. The techniques allow formulation of a beamforming problem such that the processor is not only able to place nulls in specified directions but also able to cancel directional interferences in unknown directions along with a specified frequency response in the look direction over a band of interest. The thesis also presents a set of directional constraints such that one does not need steering delays and an array can be constrained in an arbitrary direction with a specified frequency response. The constraints presented in the thesis are simple to implement. Based on these constraints a pattern synthesis technique for broadband antenna array is also presented.

This report describes simulations of observations with the near-infrared high-resolution spectrometer SIMPLE that is proposed to the ESO telescope E-ELT. We simulate M4 and G2 stars with transiting Earth-like planets and the goal is to distinguish spectral features originating from the atmosphere of the exoplanet. Noise levels of different magnitudes are added to the simulations and the minimal signal-to-noise required for detection of the atmosphere is estimated. Our conclusion is that detection of atmospheric features looks promising using this setup.

Many communications signal formats are not power efficient because of their large peak-to-average power ratios (PARs). Moreover, in the presence of nonlinear devices such as power amplifiers (PAs) or mixers, the non-constant-modulus signals may generate both in-band distortion and out-of-band interference. Backing off the signal to the linear region of the device further reduces the system power efficiency. To improve the power efficiency of the communication system, one can pursue two approaches: i) linearize the PA; ii) reduce the high PAR of the input signal. In this dissertation, we first explore the optimal nonlinearity under the peak power constraint. We show that the optimal nonlinearity is a soft limiter with a specific gain calculated based on the peak power limit, noise variance, and the probability density function of the input amplitude. The result is also extended to the fading channel case. Next, we focus on digital baseband predistortion linearization for power amplifiers with memory effects. We build a high-speed wireless test-bed and carry out digital baseband predistortion linearization experiments. To implement adaptive PA linearization in wireless handsets, we propose an adaptive digital predistortion linearization architecture that utilizes existing components of the wireless transceiver to fulfill the adaptive predistorter training functionality. We then investigate the topic of PAR reduction for OFDM signals and forward link CDMA signals. To reduce the PAR of the OFDM signal, we propose a dynamic selected mapping (DSLM) algorithm with a two-buffer structure to reduce the computational requirement of the SLM method without sacrificing the PAR reduction capability. To reduce the PAR of the forward link CDMA signal, we propose a new PAR reduction algorithm by introducing a relative offset between the in-phase branch and the quadrature branch of the transmission system.