Nanomagnetic logic, incorporating logic bits in the magnetization orientations of single-domain nanomagnets, has garnered attention as an alternative to transistor-based logic due to its non-volatility and unprecedented energy-efficiency. The energy efficiency of this scheme is determined by the method used to flip the magnetization orientations of the nanomagnets in response to one or more inputs and produce the desired output. Unfortunately, the large dissipative losses that occur when nanomagnets are switched with a magnetic field or spin-transfer-torque inhibit the promised energy-efficiency. Another technique offering superior energy efficiency, “straintronics”, involves the application of a voltage to a piezoelectric layer to generate a strain which is transferred to an elastically coupled magnetrostrictive layer, causing magnetization rotation. The functionality of this scheme can be enhanced further by introducing magnetocrystalline anisotropy in the magnetostrictive layer, thereby generating four stable magnetization states (instead of the two stable directions produced by shape anisotropy in ellipsoidal nanomagnets). Numerical simulations were performed to implement a low-power universal logic gate (NOR) using such 4-state magnetostrictive/piezoelectric nanomagnets (Ni/PZT) by clocking the piezoelectric layer with a small electrostatic potential (~0.2 V) to switch the magnetization of the magnetic layer. Unidirectional and reliable logic propagation in this system was also demonstrated theoretically. Besides doubling the logic density (4-state versus 2-state) for logic applications, these four-state nanomagnets can be exploited for higher order applications such as image reconstruction and recognition in the presence of noise, associative memory and neuromorphic computing. Experimental work in strain-based switching has been limited to magnets that are multi-domain or magnets where strain moves domain walls. In this work, we also demonstrate strain-based switching in 2-state single-domain ellipsoidal magnetostrictive nanomagnets of lateral dimensions ~200 nm fabricated on a piezoelectric substrate (PMN-PT) and studied using Magnetic Force Microscopy (MFM). A nanomagnetic Boolean NOT gate and unidirectional bit information propagation through a finite chain of dipole-coupled nanomagnets are also shown through strain-based "clocking". This is the first experimental demonstration of strain-based switching in nanomagnets and clocking of nanomagnetic logic (Boolean NOT gate), as well as logic propagation in an array of nanomagnets.

Dans les dernières années, beaucoup de travail a été consacré par l’industrie électronique pour réduire la consommation d’énergie des composants micro-électroniques qui représente un fardeau important dans la spécification des nouveaux systèmes.Afin de réduire la consommation d’énergie, nombreuses stratégies peuvent être adoptées au niveau des systèmes micro-électroniques et des simples dispositifs nano-électroniques. Récemmentle Transistor Tunnel `a effet de champ (Tunnel-FET) s’est imposé comme un candidat possible pour remplacer les dispositifs MOSFET conventionnels pour applications de tr`es basse puissance à des tensions d’alimentation VDD < 0.5V. Nous présentons un modèle Multi-Subband Monte Carlo modifié (MSMC) qui a été adapté pour la simulation de TFET Ultra Thin Body Fully Depleted Seminconductor on Insulator (FDSOIUTB) avec homo- et hétéro-jonctions et des matériaux semi-conducteurs arbitraires. Nous prenons en considération la quantification de la charge avec une correction quantique heuristique mais précise, validée via des modèles quantiques complets et des résultats expérimentaux.Le modèle MSMC a été utilisé pour simuler et évaluer la performance de FD-SOI TFET sidéealisées avec homo- et hétéro-jonction en Si, alliages SiGe ou composés InGaAs. Dans la deuxième partie de l’activité de doctorat un travail de caractérisation à basse températurea été réalisé sur les TFETs en Si et SiGe homo- et hétéro-jonction fabriqués par le centre de recherche français du CEA -LETI. L’objectif est d’estimer la présence de l’effet Tunnel comme principal mécanisme d’injection et la contribution d’autres mécanismes d’injection comme le Trap Assisted Tunneling. / In the last years a significant effort has been spent by the microelectronic industry to reducethe chip power consumption of the electronic systems since the latter is becoming a majorlimitation to CMOS technology scaling.Many strategies can be adopted to reduce the power consumption. They range from thesystem to the electron device level. In the last years Tunnel Field Effect Transistors (TFET)have imposed as possible candidate devices for replacing the convential MOSFET in ultra lowpower application at supply voltages VDD < 0.5V. TFET operation is based on a Band-to-BandTunneling (BtBT) mechanism of carrier injection in the channel and they represent a disruptiverevolutionary device concept.This thesis investigates TFET modeling and simulation, a very challenging topic becauseof the difficulties in modeling BtBT accurately. We present a modified Multi Subband MonteCarlo (MSMC) that has been adapted for the simulation of Planar Ultra Thin Body (UTB)Fully Depleted Semiconductor on Insulator (FD-ScOI) homo- and hetero-junction TFET implementedwith arbitrary semiconductor materials. The model accounts for carrier quantizationwith a heuristic but accurate quantum correction validated by means of comparison with fullquantum model and experimental results.The MSMC model has been used to simulate and assess the performance of idealized homoandhetero-junction TFETs implemented in Si, SiGe alloys or InGaAs compounds.In the second part of the thesis we discuss the characterization of TFETs at low temperature.Si and SiGe homo- and hetero-junction TFETs fabricated by CEA-LETI (Grenoble,France) are considered with the objective to identify the possible presence of alternative injectionmechanisms such as Trap Assisted Tunneling. / Negli ultimi anni uno sforzo significativo `e stato speso dall’industria microelettronica per ridurreil consumo di potenza da parte dei sistemi microelettronici. Esso infatti sta diventando unadelle limitazioni pi`u significative per lo scaling geometrico della tecnologia CMOS.Diverse strategie possono essere adottate per ridurre il consumo di potenza considerando ilsistema microelettronico nella sua totalit`a e scendendo fino a giungere all’ottimizzazione delsingolo dispositivo nano-elettronico. Negli ultimi anni il transistore Tunnel FET (TFET) si`e imposto come un possibile candidato per rimpiazzare, in applicazioni a consumo di potenzaestremamente basso con tensioni di alimentazione inferiori a 0.5V, i transistori convenzionaliMOSFET. Il funzionamento del TFET si basa sul meccanismo di iniezione purament quantisticodel Tunneling da banda a banda (BtBT) e che dovrebbe permettere una significativa riduzionedella potenza dissipata. Il BtBT nei dispositivi convenzionali `e un effetto parassita, nel TFETinvece esso `e utilizzato per poter ottenere significativi miglioramenti delle performance sottosogliae pertanto esso rappresenta una nuova concezione di dispositivo molto innovativa erivoluzionaria.Questa tesi analizza la modellizazione e la simulazione del TFET. Questi sono argomenti moltocomplessi vista la difficolt`a che si hanno nel modellare accuratamente il BtBT. In questo lavoroviene presentata una versione modificata del modello di trasporto Multi Subband Monte Carlo(MSMC) adattato per la simulazione di dispositivi TFET planari Ultra Thin Body Fully DepletedSilicon on Insulator (UTB FD-SOI), implementati con un canale composto da un unicosemiconduttore (omogiunzione) o con differenti materiali semiconduttori (eterogiunzione). Ilmodello proposto tiene il conto l’effetto di quantizzazione dovuto al confinamento dei portatoridi carica, con un’euristico ma accurato sistema di correzione. Tale modello `e stato poivalidato tramite una comparazione con altri modelli completamente quantistici e con risultatisperimentali.Superata la fase di validazione il modello MSMC `e utilizzato per simulare e verificare le performancedi dispositivi TFET implementati come omo o eterogiunzione in Silicio, leghe SiGe,o composti semiconduttori InGaAs.Nella seconda parte della tesi viene illustrato un lavoro di caratterizazione di TFET planari abassa temperatura (fino a 77K). Sono stati misurati dispositivi in Si e SiGe a omo o eterogiuzioneprodotti nella camera bianca del centro di ricerca francese CEA-LETI di Grenoble. Tramite talimisure `e stato possibile identificare la probabile presenza di meccanismi di iniezione alternativial BtBT come il Tunneling assistito da trappole (TAT) dimostrando come questo effetto `e,con ogni probabilit`a, la causa delle scarse performance in sottosoglia dei dispositivi TFETsperimentali a temperatura ambiente.

Assuming that liquid iron alloy from the outer core interacts with the solid silicate-rich lower mantle the influence on the core-mantle reflected phase PcP is studied. If the core-mantle boundary is not a sharp discontinuity, this becomes apparent in the waveform and amplitude of PcP. Iron-silicate mixing would lead to regions of partial melting with higher density which in turn reduces the velocity of seismic waves. On the basis of the calculation and interpretation of short-period synthetic seismograms, using the reflectivity and Gauss Beam method, a model space is evaluated for these ultra-low velocity zones (ULVZs). The aim of this thesis is to analyse the behaviour of PcP between 10° and 40° source distance for such models using different velocity and density configurations. Furthermore, the resolution limits of seismic data are discussed. The influence of the assumed layer thickness, dominant source frequency and ULVZ topography are analysed. The Gräfenberg and NORSAR arrays are then used to investigate PcP from deep earthquakes and nuclear explosions. The seismic resolution of an ULVZ is limited both for velocity and density contrasts and layer thicknesses. Even a very thin global core-mantle transition zone (CMTZ), rather than a discrete boundary and also with strong impedance contrasts, seems possible: If no precursor is observable but the PcP_model /PcP_smooth amplitude reduction amounts to more than 10%, a very thin ULVZ of 5 km with a first-order discontinuity may exist. Otherwise, if amplitude reductions of less than 10% are obtained, this could indicate either a moderate, thin ULVZ or a gradient mantle-side CMTZ. Synthetic computations reveal notable amplitude variations as function of the distance and the impedance contrasts. Thereby a primary density effect in the very steep-angle range and a pronounced velocity dependency in the wide-angle region can be predicted. In view of the modelled findings, there is evidence for a 10 to 13.5 km thick ULVZ 600 km south-eastern of Moscow with a NW-SE extension of about 450 km. Here a single specific assumption about the velocity and density anomaly is not possible. This is in agreement with the synthetic results in which several models create similar amplitude-waveform characteristics. For example, a ULVZ model with contrasts of -5% VP / -15% VS and +5% density explain the measured PcP amplitudes. Moreover, below SW Finland and NNW of the Caspian Sea a CMB topography can be assumed. The amplitude measurements indicate a wavelength of 200 km and a height of 1 km topography, previously also shown in the study by Kampfmann and Müller (1989). Better constraints might be provided by a joined analysis of seismological data, mineralogical experiments and geodynamic modelling. / Unter der Annahme, dass flüssiges Eisen aus dem äußeren Erdkern mit dem festen, silikat-reichen Unteren Mantel reagiert, wird eine Einflussnahme auf die Kern-Mantel Reflexionsphase PcP erwartet. Ist die Kern-Mantel Grenze aufgeweicht, und nicht wie bislang angenommen ein diskreter Übergang, so zeichnet sich dies in der Wellenform und Amplitude von PcP ab. Die Interaktion mit Eisen führt zu teilweise aufgeschmolzenen Bereichen höherer Dichte, welche die seismischen Wellengeschwindigkeiten herabsetzen. Basierend auf den Berechnungen von kurzperiodischen synthetischen Seismogrammen, mittels der Reflektivitäts- und Gauss Beam Methode, soll ein möglicher Modellraum dieser Niedriggeschwindigkeitszonen ermittelt werden. Das Ziel dieser Arbeit ist es das Verhalten von PcP im Distanzbereich von 10° bis 40° unter dem Einfluss dieser Modelle mit diversen Geschwindigkeits- und Dichtekontrasten zu untersuchen. Ferner wird das Auflösungsvermögen hinsichtlich seismischer Daten diskutiert. Entscheidende Parameter wie Anomaliedicke, Quellfrequenz und Topographie werden hierbei analysiert. Tiefe Erdbeben und Kernexplosionen, die sich im entsprechenden Entfernungsbereich zum Gräfenberg und NORSAR Array befinden, werden anschließend im Hinblick auf PcP ausgewertet. Das seismische Auflösungsvermögen von Niedriggeschwindigkeitszonen ist stark begrenzt sowohl in Bezug auf Geschwindigkeits- und Dichtekontraste als auch hinsichtlich der Mächtigkeit. Es besteht sogar die Möglichkeit einer dünnen, globalen Kern-Mantel Übergangszone, selbst mit großen Impedanzkontrasten, ohne dass dies mit seismologischen Methoden detektiert werden könnte: Wird kein precursor zu PcP beobachtet aber das PcPmodel /PcPsmooth Amplitudenverhältnis zeigt gleichzeitig eine Reduktion von mehr als 10%, dann könnte eine sehr dünne Niedriggeschwindigkeitszone von ca. 5 km Mächtigkeit und einer Diskontinuität erster Ordnung vorliegen. Andererseits, ist PcP um weniger als 10% reduziert, könnte dies entweder auf eine dünne, moderate Niedriggeschwindigkeitszone oder einen graduellen Kern-Mantel Übergang hindeuten. Die synthetischen Berechnungen ergeben starke Amplitudenvariationen als Funktion der Distanz, welche auf den Impedanzkontrast zurückzuführen sind. Dabei ergibt sich ein primärer Dichteeffekt im extremen Steilwinkelbereich und ein maßgeblicher Geschwindigkeitseinfluss im Weitwinkelbereich. Im Hinblick auf die modellierten Resultate lässt sich eine 10 - 13.5 km mächtige Niedriggeschwindigkeitszone 600 km südöstlich von Moskau mit einer NW-SE Ausdehnung von mindestens 450 km folgern, wobei eine exakte Aussage über Geschwindigkeiten und Dichte nicht möglich ist. Dies ist im Konsens mit den synthetischen Berechnungen, wonach viele unterschiedliche Modelle ähnliche Amplituden- und Wellenformcharakteristiken erzeugen. Zum Beispiel erklärt ein Modell mit Kontrasten von -5% VP / -15% VS and +5% Dichte die gemessenen PcP Amplituden. Darüber hinaus können unterhalb des südwestlichen Finnlands und nord-nordwestlich des Kaspischen Meeres Undulationen an der Kern-Mantel Grenze selbst vermutet werden. Unter Berücksichtigung früherer Studien, z. B. von Kampfmann and Müller (1989), deuten die Messergebnisse auf eine laterale Topographie von 200 km und eine Höhe von 1 km hin. Eine Eingrenzung der potentiellen Anomaliemodelle kann nur durch eine gemeinsame Auswertung mit mineralogischen Experimenten und geodynamischen Modellierungen erfolgen.

Es werden Möglichkeiten untersucht, das Kaltstart- und Warmlaufverhalten von Ottomotoren mit Sekundärlufteinblasung zu optimieren. Das für die Untersuchungen eingesetzte, innovative Sekundärlufteinblasesystem mittels Sekundärluftlader weist aufgrund der Baugröße, des Gewichts, der Leistungsfähigkeit und insbesondere der einfachen, thermodynamischen Betätigung Potenziale auf, die bisher eingesetzte Sekundärluftpumpe zu ersetzen. Den experimentellen Untersuchungen wurde die Entwicklung der Abgasgesetzgebung sowie eine theoretische Betrachtung der Entstehungsmechanismen von Abgasemissionen vorangestellt. Mittels eines Simulationsmodells werden die Abhängigkeiten des Sekundärluftladers von den motorischen Randbedingungen abgebildet. Somit kann eine Vorauswahl für das Luftmassenförderverhalten des Sekundärluftladers bei unterschiedlichen Einsatzbereichen getroffen werden. Die im Start- und Warmlauf, ebenso im Lastwechsel, gemessenen Ergebnisse wurden zur Analyse der Emissionsverbesserungsmechanismen eingesetzt. Insbesondere der Einblasezeitpunkt der Sekundärluft und das Hochlaufverhalten des Sekundärluftsystems zeigen einen enormen Einfluss auf die Höhe der Rohemissionen. Eine Gegenüberstellung aller gemessenen Varianten mit Sekundärluftpumpe und Sekundärluftlader zeigt einen deutlichen Emissionsvorteil des Sekundärluftladersystems. Zusätzlich bewirkt der Sekundärluftlader, durch die Bordnetzentlastung eine Motorlastabsenkung bei verbessertem Ansprechverhalten und höherem Sekundärluftmassenstrom. Ergebnis ist eine Verringerung der HC-Rohemissionen zwischen 20% und 30%. Die Vorteile im Gewicht und Bauvolumen sowie der geringere Verkabelungsaufwand runden die deutlichen Vorteile des Sekundärluftladers gegenüber der Sekundärluftpumpe ab. Durchgeführte Untersuchungen bei Tieftemperatur (-7°C) und unter Höhenbedingungen haben ebenfalls Vorteile gegenüber der Sekundärluftpumpe ausgewiesen. Die theoretische Abschätzung des Einsatzfeldes für den Sekundärluftlader ist ab einem Hubraum von 1,2°l Hubraum durchgeführt und als positiv bewertet worden. / The paper investigates possible ways of optimizing the cold-start and warm-up performance of gasoline engines with secondary air injection. Due to its size, weight, performance capability, and especially its simple, thermodynamic operation the innovative secondary air injection system used for the investigations and featuring a secondary air charger has the potential to replace the secondary air pump used to date. The experimental investigations are preceded by the development of exhaust emission legislation and a theoretical analysis of the process leading to exhaust emissions. A simulation model is used to illustrate the dependencies of the secondary air charger on boundary engine conditions. Consequently it is possible to make a preselection for the air mass conducting properties of the secondary air charger in various fields of application. The results obtained by measurement in starting, warm-up, and in load changes, were used to analyze the emission improvement processes. The level of raw emissions is affected enormously by the time of injection of secondary air and the acceleration performance of the secondary air system. A comparison of all the measured variants with the secondary air pump and secondary air charger indicates that the secondary air charger system has a distinct emission advantage. In addition, by relieving the vehicle power supply the secondary air charger brings about a reduction in engine load, improved response, and higher secondary air mass flow. The result is a 20% to 30% reduction in raw HC emissions. The significant advantages over the secondary air pump are rounded off by benefits in terms of weight and bulk volume and a reduction in the amount of wiring. Tests conducted at low temperature (-7°C) and under high altitude conditions have also indicated advantages over the secondary air pump.

Deposition of nanoscale thickness films is ubiquitous in micro- and nano-scale device manufacturing. Current techniques such as spin-coating and chemical vapor deposition are designed to create only uniform thin films, and can be wasteful in material consumption. They lack the ability to adaptively prescribe desired film thickness profiles. This dissertation presents a novel inkjet-based zero-waste polymer deposition process referred to as Jet and Coat of Adaptive Sustainable Thin Films or J-CAST. The core of this process is built on an experimentally validated multi-scale fluid evolution model, based on extensions of lubrication theory. This model involves a nano-scale fluid film sandwiched between two flat plates: a compliant superstrate and a rigid substrate, with spatial topography on both surfaces. Accounting for the flexural elasticity of the compliant superstrate, and describing the temporal evolution of the fluid film in the presence of different boundary conditions reveals that instead of seeking process equilibrium, non-equilibrium transients should be exploited to guide film deposition. This forms the first core concept behind the process. This concept also enables robust full-wafer processes for creation of uniform films as well as nanoscale films with prescribed variation of thickness at mm-scale spatial wavelengths. The use of inkjets enables zero-waste adaptive material deposition with the preferred drop volumes and locations obtained from an inverse optimization formulation. This forms the second core concept behind the process. The optimization is based on the prescribed film thickness profile and typically involves >100,000 integer parameters. Using simplifying approximations for the same, three specific applications have been discussed - gradient surfaces in combinatorial materials science and research, elliptical profiles with ~10km radius of curvature for X-ray nanoscopy applications and polishing of starting wafer surfaces for mitigation of existing nanotopography. In addition, the potential of extending the demonstrated process to high throughput roll-roll systems has also been mentioned by modifying the model to incorporate the compliance of the substrate along with that of the superstrate. / text

The number concentration and size distribution of particles in Brisbane have been studied extensively by the researchers at The International Laboratory for Air Quality and Health, Queensland University of Technology (Morawska et al., 1998, 1999a, 1999b). However, the comprehensive studies of chemical compositions of atmospheric particles, especially with regard to the two main classes of pollutants (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and trace elements), that are usually of environmental and health interest, have not been fully undertaken. Therefore, this thesis presents detailed information on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and elemental compositions of vehicle exhausts and of urban air in Brisbane. The levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and elements in three of Brisbane's urban sites (Queensland University of Technology, Woolloongabba and ANZ stadium sites) were measured. The most common PAHs found in all sites were naphthalene, phenanthrene, anthracene, fluoranthene, pyrene and chrysene while Al, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Si, Sn, Sr and Zn were the most common elements detected in the total suspended particles and fine particle (PM2.5). With the aid of multivariate analysis techniques, several outcomes were obtained. For example: -- Major human activities such as vehicular and industrial sources were the most contributing pollution sources in Brisbane. However, these two sources have different influential strength on the compositions of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and trace inorganic elements found in the urban air. -- Woolloongabba bus platform was the most polluted site on the basis of the elemental and PAH compositions in its air samples while QUT site was the worst polluted site in terms of PM2.5 elemental contents. These results demonstrated that the impact of traffic related pollutants on Brisbane's urban air is significant. This led to the investigations of the direct emissions of pollutants from exhaust vehicular source in the second part of this research work. The exhaust studies included the investigations of PAHs, trace inorganic elements and particles. At the time of the study, the majority of vehicles in Brisbane used low sulfur diesel (LSD) fuel or unleaded petrol (ULP). However, the importance of vehicles using ultra low sulfur diesel (ULSD) and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is constantly growing. Therefore, the exhaust emission studies on chassis dynamometer from heavy duty non-catalyst-equipped buses powered by LSD and ULSD with 500 ppm and 50 ppm sulfur contents respectively as well as passenger cars powered by ULP and LPG were explored. The outcomes of such studies are summarized as follows: -- Naphthalene, acenaphthene, acenaphthylene, anthracene, phenanthrene, fluorene, fluoranthene and pyrene were frequently emitted by the buses powered by LSD and ULSD. However, buses powered by ULSD emitted 91% less PAHs than those powered by LSD. On the other hand, Mg, Ca, Cr, Fe, Cu, Zn, Ti, Ni, Pb, Be, P, Se, Ti and Ge were found in measurable quantities in the exhaust of the buses. The emissions of the elements were found to be strongly influenced by the engine driving conditions of the buses and fuel parameters such as sulfur content, fuel density and cetane index. -- Naphthalene, fluorene, phenanthrene, anthracene, pyrene, chrysene, benzo(a)anthracene and benzo(b)fluoranthene were predominantly emitted by ULP and LPG cars. On the average, the total emission factors of PAHs from LPG cars were generally lower than those of ULP cars, but given the large variations in the emission factors of cars powered by the same type of fuel, differences in the emission factors from both car types were statistically insignificant. In general, platinum group elements and many other elements were found in the exhausts of cars powered by both fuels. Emissions of inorganic elements from the cars were dependent on the type and the mileage of the cars. For example, ULP cars generally emitted higher levels of Cu, Mg, Al and Zn while LPG cars emitted higher level of V. In addition, cars with higher mileages were associated with higher emissions of the major elements (Zn, Al, Fe, V and Cu). -- Buses powered by ULSD usually emitted fewer particles, which were generally 31% to 59% lower than those emitted by LSD powered buses. Similarly, cars powered by LPG emitted less particles from those powered by ULP fuel. However, more nanoparticles (those with aerodynamic diameters of less than 50 nm) were emitted by LPG powered cars than their ULP counterparts. Health effect assessment of the exhaust PAHs was evaluated in terms of benzo(a)pyrene toxicity equivalent (BAPeq). The potential toxicities of PAHs emitted by ULSD powered buses were generally lower than those emitted by their LSD counterparts. A similar trend with lower emissions of PAHs from LPG cars than from ULP cars was observed when otherwise identical passenger cars were powered by LPG and ULP fuels. In summary, this thesis has shown that the majority of airborne particles found around Brisbane have anthropogenic origins, particularly vehicle emissions, and that fuel or lubricant formulations and engine operating conditions play important roles in the physical and chemical characteristics of pollutants emitted by vehicles. The implications of these results on worldwide strategies to reduce the environmental and health effects of particles emitted by motor vehicles were discussed. In this regard, direct emission measurements from vehicles powered by LSD, ULSD, ULP and LPG unveiled the relative environmental benefits associated with the use of ULSD in place of LSD to power diesel engines, and of LPG in place of ULP to power passenger cars.

Les progrès réalisés durant ces dernières années dans le domaine de la microélectronique et notamment vis-à-vis de l’augmentation exponentielle de la densité d’intégration des composants et des systèmes a participé activement à l’apparition et au développement de systèmes portables communicants de plus en plus performants et polyvalents. La R&D dans les technologies de stockage d’énergie n’a pas suivi cette tendance d’évolution très rapide ; ce qui constitue un handicap majeur dans les évolutions futures des systèmes portables. La transmission d’énergie sans fils sur des distances considérables (plusieurs dizaines de mètres) grâce aux microondes constitue une solution très prometteuse pour pallier aux problèmes d’autonomie dans le cas des systèmes sans fils communicants. De plus, du fait de l’omniprésence des ondes électromagnétiques dans notre environnement avec des niveaux plus ou moins importants, la récupération et l’exploitation de cette énergie libre est également possible. La rectenna (Rectifying Antenna) est le dispositif permettant de capter et de convertir une onde électromagnétique en une tension continue. Plusieurs travaux de thèse axés sur l’étude et l’optimisation de la rectenna ont été réalisés au sein du laboratoire. Ces travaux avaient montré que pour des faibles niveaux de champs les tensions délivrées par la rectenna sont généralement très faibles et inexploitables. Aussi, comme la majorité des micro-sources d’énergie et à cause de son impédance interne, les performances de la rectenna dépendent fortement de sa charge de sortie. Ainsi, le développement d’un système d’interfaçage de la rectenna est nécessaire afin de pallier ces manquements inhérents du convertisseur RF/DC. Ce genre de système d’interfaçage est généralement absent dans la littérature à cause des faibles niveaux de puissance exploités. Par conséquent, la rectenna est très souvent utilisée tel quelle ; ce qui limite fortement le champ applicatif. Dans ce projet de recherche, un système de gestion énergétique de la rectenna complètement autonome a été conçu, développé et optimisé afin de garantir les performances optimales de la rectenna quelques soient les fluctuations de la puissance d’entrée et celles de la charge de sortie. Le circuit d’interfaçage permet également de fournir à la charge des niveaux de tension utilisables. Le système réalisé est basé tout d’abord sur l’utilisation d’un convertisseur DC/DC résonant pouvant fonctionner d’une manière complètement autonome à partir de niveaux très bas de la tension et de la puissance de la source. Ce convertisseur permet donc de garantir l’autonomie du système en éliminant la nécessité d’une source d’énergie auxiliaire. A cause de ses faibles performances énergétiques, ce convertisseur ne sera utilisé que durant la phase de démarrage. L’efficacité du système en termes de rendement énergétique et d’adaptation d’impédance est garantie grâce à l’utilisation d’un convertisseur Flyback fonctionnant dans son régime de conduction discontinu. Ainsi, une adaptation d’impédance très efficace est réalisée entre la rectenna et la charge de sortie. Ce convertisseur principal fonctionnera durant le régime permanent. Les deux convertisseurs ont été optimisés pour des niveaux de tension et de puissance aussi bas que quelques centaines de mV et quelques μW respectivement. Des mesures expérimentales réalisées sur plusieurs prototypes ont démontré le bon fonctionnement et les excellentes performances prédites par la procédure de conception ; ce qui nous permet de valider notre approche. De plus, les performances obtenues se distinguent parfaitement vis-à-vis de l’état de l’art. Enfin, en fonction de l’application désirée, plusieurs synoptiques d’association des deux structures sont proposés. Ceci inclut également la gestion énergétique de la charge de sortie. / Latest advancements in microelectronic technologies and especially with the exponential increase of components and devices integration density have yield novel high technology and polyvalent portable systems. Such polyvalent communication devices need more and more available energy. Nonetheless, research in energy storage technology did not evolve with a similar speed. This constitutes a substantial handicap for the future evolution of portable devices. Wireless energy transfer through large distances such as tens of meters using microwaves is a very promising solution in order to deal with the autonomy problem in portable devices. In addition, since electromagnetic waves are ubiquitous in our environment, harvesting and using this free and available energy is also possible. Rectenna (Rectifying Antenna) is the device that allows to collect and to convert an electromagnetic wave into DC power. Several thesis research projects focusing on studying and optimizing the rectenna was carried-out into the Ampere laboratory. It has been shown that for a low level of the electromagnetic field the voltage provided by the rectenna is ultra-low and thus impractical. Further, as it is the case for the majority of energy harvesting micro-sources, the performances of the rectenna depend highly with the loading conditions. So, the development of an interfacing circuit for the rectenna is a necessary task in order to relieve the RF/DC converter inherent flaws. As it is pointed out into the literature, such power management circuit is in most cases absent due to the ultra-low power levels. In most cases, the rectenna is used as it; which reduces strongly the applications area. Within this research project, an ultra-low power and fully-autonomous power management system dedicated to rectennas was developed and optimized. It allows to guarantee highest performances of the rectenna whatever are the fluctuation of the input power level and the output load conditions. In addition, this power management system allows to provide a conventional voltage level to the load. The first part of the developed system is composed by a resonant DC/DC converter which plays the role of start-up circuit. In this case, no external energy source is required even with low voltage and ultra-low power source conditions. Because of its general poor energetic performances, this resonant converter will be used only during the start-up phase. The second part of the developed system is composed by a Flyback converter operating in its discontinuous conduction mode. Using this mode, the converter realizes static and very effective impedance matching with the rectenna in order to extract the maximum available power whatever are the input and the output conditions. Furthermore, thanks to the optimization procedure, the converter shows excellent efficiency performances even for μW power levels based on a discrete demonstrator. Finally, the converter provides conventional voltage levels allowing to power standard electronics. Experimental tests based on discrete prototypes for the both converters show distinguish results for the start-up voltage, the impedance matching effectiveness and the efficiency as regard to the state of the art.

The ever expanding range of applications for embedded systems continues to offer new challenges (and opportunities) to chip manufacturers. Applications ranging from exciting high resolution gaming to routine tasks like temperature control need to be supported on increasingly small devices with shrinking dimensions and tighter energy budgets. These systems benefit greatly by having the capability to operate over a wide range of supply voltages, known as ultra dynamic voltage scaling (U-DVS). This refers to systems capable of operating from nominal voltages down to sub-threshold voltages. Memories play an important role in these systems with future chips estimated to have over 80% of chip area occupied by memories. This thesis presents the design and characterization of an ultra dynamic voltage scalable memory (SRAM) that functions from nominal voltages down to sub-threshold voltages without the need for external support. The key contributions of the thesis are as follows: 1) A variation tolerant reference generation for single ended sensing: We present a reference generator, for U-DVS memories, that tracks the memory over a wide range of voltages and is tunable to allow functioning down to sub-threshold voltages. Replica columns are used to generate the reference voltage which allows the technique to track slow changes such as temperature and aging. A few configurable cells in the replica column are found to be sufficient to cover the whole range of voltages of interest. The use of tunable delay line to generate timing is shown to help in overcoming the effects of process variations. 2) Random-sampling based tuning algorithm: Tuning is necessary to overcome the in-creased effects of variation at lower voltages. We present an random-sampling based BIST tuning algorithm that significantly speed-up the tuning ensuring that the time required to tune is comparable to a single MBIST algorithm. Further, the use of redundancy after delay tuning enables maximum utilization of redundancy infrastructure to reduce power consumption and enhance performance. 3) Testing and Characterization for U-DVS systems: Testing and characterization is an important challenge in U-DVS systems that have remained largely unexplored. We propose an iterative technique that allows realization of an on-chip oscilloscope with minimal area overhead. The all digital nature of the technique makes it simple to design and implement across technology nodes. Combining the proposed techniques allows the designed 4 Kb SRAM array to function from 1.2 V down to 310 mV with reads functioning down to 190 mV. This would contribute towards moving ultra wide voltage operation a step closer towards implementation in commercial designs.

Graduation theses is about complex design of tram vehicle for citz mass transport for near future. Conception is specialized on main work of tram vehicle: ergonomics, comfort, perfect view and good traction.

<p> </p><div> <div> <div> <p> </p><div> <div> <div> <p> </p><div> <div> <div> <p>The current state of the art in biopotential recordings rely on radiative electromagnetic (EM) fields. In such transmissions, only a small fraction of this energy is received since the EM fields are widely radiated resulting in lossy inefficient systems. Using the body as a communication medium (similar to a ’wire’) allows for the containment of the energy within the body, yielding order(s) of magnitude lower energy than radiative EM communication. The first part of this work introduces Animal Body Communication for untethered rodent biopotential recording and for the first time this work develops the theory and models for animal body communication circuitry and channel loss. In vivo experimental analysis proves that ABC successfully transmits acquired electrocardiogram (EKG) signals through the body with correlation greater than 99% when compared to traditional wireless communication modalities, with a 50x reduction in power consumption. The second part of this work focusses on the analysis and design of an Electro-Quasistatic Human Body Communication (EQS-HBC) system for simultaneous sensing and transmission of biopotential signals. In this work, detailed analysis on the system level interaction between the sensing and transmitting circuitry is studied and a design to enable simultaneous sensing and transmission is proposed. Experimental analysis was performed to understand the interaction between the Right Leg-Drive circuitry and the HBC transmission along with the effect of the ADC quantization on signal quality. Finally, experimental trials proves that EKG signals can be transmitted through the body with greater than 96% correlation when compared to Bluetooth systems at extremely low powers. </p> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div>