Medical image segmentation is an increasingly important component in virtual pathology, diagnostic imaging and computer-assisted surgery. Better hard\vare for image acquisition and a variety of advanced visualisation methods have paved the way for the development of computer based tools for medical image analysis and interpretation. The routine use of medical imaging scans of multiple modalities has been growing over the last decades and data sets such as the Visible Human Project have introduced a new modality in the form of colour cryo section data. These developments have given rise to an increasing need for better automatic and semiautomatic segmentation methods. The work presented in this thesis concerns the development of a new framework for robust semi-automatic segmentation of medical imaging data of multiple modalities. Following the specification of a set of conceptual and technical requirements, the framework known as ACSR (Adaptable ClassSpecific Representation) is developed in the first case for 2D colour cryo section segmentation. This is achieved through the development of a novel algorithm for adaptable class-specific sampling of point neighbourhoods, known as the PGA (Path Growing Algorithm), combined with Learning Vector Quantization. The framework is extended to accommodate 3D volume segmentation of cryo section data and subsequently segmentation of single and multi-channel greyscale MRl data. For the latter the issues of inhomogeneity and noise are specifically addressed. Evaluation is based on comparison with previously published results on standard simulated and real data sets, using visual presentation, ground truth comparison and human observer experiments. ACSR provides the user with a simple and intuitive visual initialisation process followed by a fully automatic segmentation. Results on both cryo section and MRI data compare favourably to existing methods, demonstrating robustness both to common artefacts and multiple user initialisations. Further developments into specific clinical applications are discussed in the future work section.

L’alliage ternaire InGaN reçoit beaucoup d’attention grâce à son énergie de bande interdite ajustable qui varie entre l’infrarouge et l’ultraviolet. Les matériaux GaN et InGaN sont largement utilisés dans de nombreuses applications telles que des cellules photovoltaïques à haute efficacité, des diodes électroluminescentes ou des diodes laser à forte luminosité allant du bleu au vert ou encore la génération de lumière blanche directe. L’ensemble des propriétés de ce matériau en fait aussi un candidat sérieux pour un certain nombre d’autres applications. Pour concevoir des composants à base d’InGaN, il est cependant vital de déterminer au préalable les propriétés optiques du matériau aux fréquences d’intérêt et il n’existe que très peu voire aucune communication sur les indices du GaN ou de l’InxGa1-xN pour x>0.07. Nous étudions dans cette thèse la croissance par metalorganic chemical vapor deposition et la caractérisation des indices optiques de GaN, d’InN et d’InxGa1-xN avec une concentration en indium variant jusqu’à x=0.14 dans les domaines de fréquence visible et térahertz et discutons la conception et le procédé de fabrication d’une photodiode térahertz ultrarapide. / The InGaN compound is a promising ternary alloy system that receives a lot of attentions thanks to its tunable bandgap that varies from the near infrared region to the near ultraviolet region. InGaN/GaN materials have been widely used in various applications like high efficiency solar cells, high-brightness blue to green light emitting diodes or laser diodes as well as non-phosphor based direct white light generation. The unique set of properties of this material also makes it a suitable candidate for a number of other new applications. However, to design efficient InGaN-based devices, it is a prerequisite to know the optical properties of InGaN films at the frequencies of interest and there is currently very little information on the index of GaN and InxGa1-xN with x>0.07. In this thesis, we study and characterize the optical indices of GaN, InN and InxGa1-xN thin films grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition with indium concentration varying up to x=0.14. We discuss the design and fabrication process of an InGaN-based ultrafast terahertz photodiode.

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There is a trend to move the frequency band for wireless transmission to ever higher frequencies in the radio frequency (RF) spectrum to fulfil the exponentially increasing demand in wireless communication capacity. Research work has gone into improving the spectral efficiency of wireless communication system to use the scarce and expensive resources in the most efficient way. However, to make wireless communication future-proof, it is essential to explore ways to transmit wirelessly outside the traditional RF spectrum. The visible light (VL) spectrum bandwidth is 1000 times wider than the entire 300 GHz RF spectrum and is, therefore, a viable alternative. Visible light communication (VLC) enables existing lighting infrastructures to provide not only illumination but also wireless communication. In conjunction with the concept of cell densification, a networked VLC system, light fidelity attocell (LAC) network, has been proposed to offer wide coverage and high speed wireless data transmission. In this study, many issues related to the downlink system in LAC networks have been investigated. When analysing the downlink performance of LAC networks, a large number of random channel samples are required for the empirical calculation of some system metrics, such as the signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR). However, using state-of-the-art approaches to calculate the non-line-of-sight (NLoS) channel component leads to significant computational complexity and prolonged computation time. An analytical method has been presented in this thesis to efficiently calculate the NLoS channel impulse response (CIR) in VLC systems. The results show that the proposed method offers significant reduction in computation time compared to the state-of-the-art approaches. A comprehensive performance evaluation of the downlink system of LAC networks is carried out in this thesis. Based on the research results in the literature in the field of optical wireless communication (OWC), a system level framework for the downlink system in LAC networks is developed. By using this framework, the downlink performance subject to a large number of parameters is evaluated. Additionally, the effect of varying network size, cell deployment and key system parameters are investigated. The calculation of downlink SINR statistics, cell data rate and outage probability are considered and analysed. The results show that the downlink performance of LAC networks is promising in terms of achievable data rate per unit area compared to other state-of-the-art RF small-cell networks. It is found that co-channel interference (CCI) is a major source of signal impairment in the downlink of LAC network. In order to mitigate the influence of CCI on signal distortion in LAC networks, widely used interference mitigation techniques for RF cellular systems are borrowed and extensively investigated. In this study, fractional frequency reuse (FFR) is adapted to the downlink of LAC networks. The SINR statistics and the spectral efficiency in LAC downlink system with FFR schemes are evaluated. Results show that the FFR technique can greatly improve the performance of cell edge users and as well the overall spectral efficiency. Further performance improvements can be achieved by incorporating angular diversity transmitters (ADTs) with FFR and coordinated multi-point joint transmission (JT) techniques.

Visible Light Positioning (VLP) uses modulated LED luminaries to help locate a receiver inside a building. Indoor positioning is becoming an increasingly important service, and visible light has many advantages over other technologies used in indoor positioning systems (IPS). However existing VLP approaches have major drawbacks in robustness that have hindered their ability to be commercially deployed. This work proposes and demonstrates a new way of using light signals in an indoor localization system, titled Angular Diversity Visible Light Positioning (AD-VLP). AD-VLP uses optics at the transmitter to create a structured overlapping light pattern that can be used for positioning. This method is shown to have several advantages over existing VLP approaches, including increased robustness over intensity based techniques while still using a single element receiver. This work also includes an experimental implementation of the proposed AD-VLP system using existing mobile device technology. The experiments prove that sub-meter accuracy is obtainable, even when the receiver is oriented away from the transmitter. / Thesis / Master of Applied Science (MASc)

Wireless communication is a form of communication that has been around for over hundreds of years and is the fastest growing segment of the communication industry. Today, wireless communication has become an essential part of almost everyone’s daily life, and the number of users has increased exponentially over the last decade with the introduction of the internet, mobile devices and smart phones. Radio Frequency (RF) transmission is arguably the most popular method of communication and is available worldwide. With the rapid progress in technology and the increase of number of users, the limited RF spectrum is becoming more congested which led to numerous research efforts to find an alternative that can help to alleviate the pending problem. One of the proposed solutions is Visible Light Communication (VLC), which uses visible Light Emitting Diode (LED) for data transmission. In this thesis, three integrated microLED/Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) Integrated Circuits (ICs) are presented with the main aim of increasing the data rate of transmission. The first microLED/CMOS IC presented here is the Generation V microLED/CMOS driver which represents the continuation of the earlier work in the HYPIX project, which aimed to develop a microLED/CMOS driver to optically pump an organic polymer laser. A 40x10 pixelarray of Generation V microLED/CMOS driver was thus designed, primarily for optical pumping polymer lasing purposes, but has also demonstrated the ability to perform communication transmission using an On-Off Keying (OOK) modulation scheme. The driver consumes up to 330mA current and produces approximately 12mW of optical power from a single pixel, which is about 3 times higher than its predecessor. The second microLED/CMOS IC is the microLED/CMOS Current Feedback (CCFBK) driver which was designed to facilitate Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) modulation. OFDM is one of the modulation schemes, adopted from the RF domain, that was proposed to be implemented in VLC in order to increase the data transmission rate. To the best of the author’s knowledge, the microLED/CCFBK driver is the first CMOS driver for microLED that was designed to perform analogue modulation for VLC purposes. The driver is characterised and shows the ability to produce up to 3.5mW of optical power with a data transmission rate of up to 486Mbit/s. The microLED/CMOS Optical Feedback (COFBK) driver is the third microLED/CMOS IC presented in this thesis. The driver looks to improve on the performance of the microLED/CCFBK driver. OFDM transmission requires high linearity to ensure low Bit Error Rate (BER) transmission. However, the optical power output of an LED is not, in general, linear with the input voltage signal. The microLED/COFBK driver looks to increase the linearity of the optical power output by integrating a microLED and a photodiode in a single pixel to create a feedback loop. Once again, to the best of the author’s knowledge, the microLED/COFBK driver is the first CMOS driver for microLED which integrates both optical source and sensor in a single pixel to help linearise the optical power output for communication purposes; in this case, VLC. For a similar range of optical power, the microLED/COFBK driver shows a reduction about 5.3% in the degree of non-linearity compared to the microLED/CCFBK driver and produces lower Total Harmonic Distortion (THD). The microLED/COFBK driver showed the potential to increase the data rate by a factor of four over that of microLED/CCFBK driver. The analogue modulated microLED/CMOS ICs described here are the first-generation drivers that have demonstrated the possibilities to increase the data rate using OFDM. A number of possible design improvements have been identified which will enhance future performance and integration with the standard VLC system.

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Dans cette thèse, deux applications de nanomatériaux sont présentées : la première concerne l’utilisation de la technique LSPR pour la détection d’interactions moléculaires et la seconde est consacrée à l’utilisation de surfaces semi-conductrices de TiO2 et de ZnO pour la photo-catalyse pour la dépollution environnementale. D’abord, nous avons présenté la préparation et la caractérisation d’interfaces plasmoniques d’ITO/Au NSs/ITO. Celles-ci montrent des signaux optiques aussi bien pour des couches minces qu’épaisses d’ITO. Elles permettent une détection LSPR à courte et à longue portée. La chimie « click » a été utilisée pour greffer le CBPQT4+ fonctionnalisé alcynyl sur une interface ITO/Au NSs/ITO terminée « azide ». Les interfaces obtenues ont été utilisées pour démontrer la possibilité d’enregistrer la formation et la rupture de complexes « hôte-invité » (CBPQT+4/TTF) utilisant la technique LSPR. Dans la seconde partie, consacrée à la photocatalyse, nous nous sommes intéressés à deux types de traitements de TiO2 et de ZnO dans le but d’améliorer leur efficacité photocatalytique sous irradiation visible. Nous avons, préparé et caractérisé des lames de quartz recouvertes d’une couche mince de TiO2 de différentes épaisseurs avec et sans nanostructures d’or sous la couche mince de TiO2. La performance photocatalytique de ces interfaces n’est pas exceptionnelle pour la dégradation de la rhodamine B mais elles sont très stables. La dernière partie de la thèse concerne la préparation et la caractérisation de nanostructures de ZnO et de ZnO dopé à l’iode. La substitution des ions d’oxygène par des ions d’iode introduit des niveaux donneurs dans la bande interdite de ZnO qui sont suffisamment superficiels à température ambiante. L’activation d’une transition, dans la bande interdite dans le cas des substrats de ZnO dopé à l’iode, explique les meilleures performances photocatalytiques de ces substrats de la rhodamine B sous irradiation visible. Ces résultats sont très prometteurs pour diverses applications photocatalytiques des substrats à base de ZnO. / In this thesis, two applications of nanomaterials are presented: the first concerns the use of the LSPR for the detection of molecular interactions and the second is devoted to the use of TiO2 and ZnO semi-conductive surfaces for photocatalysis in view of environmental remediation. The first part concerns the fabrication and characterization of plasmonic interfaces of ITO/Au NSs/ITO. These surfaces showed optical signals for thin as well as for thick ITO films. These interfaces allowed short and long-range LSPR sensing. The “click” chemistry was used to covalently link an alkynyl-functionalized CBPQT4+ unit to an azide-terminated LSPR interface. Tetrathiafulvalene was used as a model guest molecule to demonstrate the possibility to follow the complexation/decomplexation events by monitoring the change in the LSPR signal. The second part is devoted to photocatalysis. It is focused on the investigation of the effect of two different treatments of TiO2 and ZnO on their photocatalytic efficiency under visible light irradiation. We have first prepared and characterized quartz slides coated with a thin layer of TiO2 with different thicknesses with and without gold nanostructures under the thin layer of TiO2. The photocatalytic performance of these interfaces is not exceptional for the degradation of rhodamine B under visible light irradiation but these interfaces have the advantage of being very stable. The last part of the thesis consists on the preparation of ZnO and iodine-doped ZnO substrates by a hydrothermal chemical deposition, and evaluation of their photocatalytic performance. The substitution of oxygen ions by iodine ions introduces donor levels in the bandgap of ZnO, which are sufficiently shallow at room temperature. The activation of a sub-band gap transition in iodine-doped ZnO nanostructured substrates explains the better performance of these substrates for the photodegradation of rhodamine B under visible light irradiation. These results are very promising in view of various photocatalytic applications of the ZnO-based substrates.

Objective – This paper is based on a national survey conducted in late 2013 by the authors, then co-moderators of the Visible Minority Librarians of Canada (ViMLoC) Network of the Canadian Library Association (CLA). It is a first survey of its kind, aiming to capture a snapshot of the demographics of the visible minority librarians working in Canadian institutions. The authors hoped that the data collected from the survey and the analysis presented in this paper would help identify the needs, challenges and barriers of this group of librarians and set future directions for ViMLoC. The authors also hoped that the findings would be useful to library administrators, librarians, and researchers working on multicultural issues, diversity, recruitment and retention, leadership, library management, and other related areas. Methods – An online survey questionnaire was created and the survey invitation was sent to visible minority librarians through relevant library association electronic mail lists and posted on ViMLoC’s electronic mail list and website. The survey consisted of 12 questions: multiple-choice, yes/no questions, and open-ended. The survey asked if the participants were visible minority librarians. If they responded “No,” the survey closed for them. Respondents who did not identify themselves as minority librarians were excluded from completing the survey. Results – Of the 192 individuals that attempted, 120 who identified themselves as visible minority librarians completed the survey. Of these, 36% identified themselves as Chinese, followed by South Asian (20%) and Black (12%). There were 63% who identified themselves as first generation visible minorities and 28% who identified themselves as second generation. A total of 84% completed their library degree in Canada. Equal numbers (38% each) identified themselves as working in public and academic libraries, followed by 15% in special libraries. Although they are spread out all over Canada and beyond, a vast majority of them are in British Columbia (40%) and Ontario (26%). There were 38% who identified themselves as reference/information services librarians, followed by “other” (18%) and “liaison librarian” (17%). A total of 82% responded that they worked full time. The open-ended question at the end of the survey was answered by 42.5% of the respondents, with responses falling within the following broad themes: jobs, mentorship, professional development courses, workplace issues, general barriers, and success stories. Conclusions – There are at least 120 first, second, and other generation minority librarians working in (or for) Canadian institutions across the country and beyond. They work in different kinds of libraries, are spread out all over Canada, and have had their library education in various countries or in Canada. They need a forum to discuss their issues and to have networking opportunities, and a mentorship program to seek advice from other librarians with similar backgrounds who have been in similar situations to themselves when finding jobs or re-pursuing their professional library degrees. Getting support from and working collaboratively with CLA, ViMLoC can be proactive in helping this group of visible minority librarians.