Antenna impedance matching with neural networks

Impedance matching between transmission lines and antennas is an important and fundamental concept in electromagnetic theory. One definition of antenna impedance is the resistance and reactance seen at the antenna terminals or the ratio of electric to magnetic fields at the input. The primary intent of this paper is real-time compensation for changes in the driving point impedance of an antenna due to frequency deviations. In general, the driving point impedance of an antenna or antenna array is computed by numerical methods such as the method of moments or similar techniques. Some configurations do lend themselves to analytical solutions, which will be the primary focus of this work. This paper employs a neural control system to match antenna feed lines to two common antennas during frequency sweeps. In practice, impedance matching is performed off-line with Smith charts or relatively complex formulas but they rarely perform optimally over a large bandwidth. There have been very few attempts to compensate for matching errors while the transmission system is in operation and most techniques have been targeted to a relatively small range of frequencies. The approach proposed here employs three small neural networks to perform real-time impedance matching over a broad range of frequencies during transmitter operation. Double stub tuners are being explored in this paper but the approach can certainly be applied to other methodologies. The ultimate purpose of this work is the development of an inexpensive microcontroller-based system.     

Metasurface Reflector (MSR) Loading for High Performance Small Microstrip Antenna Design

A meander stripline feed multiband microstrip antenna loaded with metasurface reflector (MSR) structure has been designed, analyzed and constructed that offers the wireless communication services for UHF/microwave RFID and WLAN/WiMAX applications. The proposed MSR assimilated antenna comprises planar straight forward design of circular shaped radiator with horizontal slots on it and 2D metasurface formed by the periodic square metallic element that resembles the behavior of metamaterials. A custom made high dielectric bio-plastic substrate (ε_r = 15) is used for fabricating the prototype of the MSR embedded planar monopole antenna. The details of the design progress through numerical simulations and experimental results are presented and discussed accordingly. The measured impedance bandwidth, radiation patterns and gain of the proposed MSR integrated antenna are compared with the obtained results from numerical simulation, and a good compliance can be observed between them. The investigation shows that utilization of MSR structure has significantly broadened the -10dB impedance bandwidth than the conventional patch antenna: from 540 to 632 MHz (17%), 467 to 606 MHz (29%) and 758 MHz to 1062 MHz (40%) for three distinct operating bands centered at 0.9, 3.5 and 5.5 GHz. Additionally, due to the assimilation of MSR, the overall realized gains have been upgraded to a higher value of 3.62 dBi, 6.09 dBi and 8.6 dBi for lower, middle and upper frequency band respectively. The measured radiation patterns, impedance bandwidths (S11<-10 dB) and gains from the MSR loaded antenna prototype exhibit reasonable characteristics that can satisfy the requirements of UHF/microwave (5.8 GHz) RFID, WiMAX (3.5/5.5 GHz) and WLAN (5.2/5.8 GHz) applications.     

Dielectric Resonator Antenna Loaded with Reconfigurable Plasma Metamaterial Polarization Converter

In this paper, a plasma based metamaterial (MM) polarizer is optimized for linear to circular polarization conversion in Ku-band wireless applications. The plasma MM polarizer is design based on the transmission mode. The proposed plasma MM polarizer unit-cell element consists of back-to-back plasma arcs placed on the top and the bottom faces of a dielectric substrate. Polarization Conversion from linear polarized (LP) wave to circular polarized (CP) wave requires that the incident wave is splitted into two orthogonal components with equal magnitudes and π/2 phase difference. The polarization characteristics of the plasma MM polarizer have bandwidth of 17.5% centered around 13.7 GHz. A linearly polarized dielectric resonator antenna (DRA) is designed with impedance bandwidth of 27.05%. The LP-DRA loaded with plasma MM polarizer radiates CP-waves with improved gain of 8.89 dBi. Reconfigurable CP radiation right-hand, left-hand, or linear polarization is achieved when the argon gas in the lower, upper, or both arc-shaped containers is ionized to plasma state. The proposed plasma MM polarizer and the DRA structures are examined utilizing a full-wave simulator.

     

Efficient Surface Plasmon Polariton Excitation with the Beam Generated by Micro Triangular Prism

The optical beam generated by a micro triangular prism is presented to excite surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) on a single silver nano slit. The electromagnetic fields generated by the micro triangular prism and the excited surface plasmon polaritons are simulated with finite-difference time-domain method. Compared with directly normal incident beam, the efficiency of SPPs’ excitation with the beam generated by the micro triangular prism is highly improved.     

Photosystem II antenna complexes CP26 and CP29 are essential for nonphotochemical quenching in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

Photosystems must balance between light harvesting to fuel the photosynthetic process for CO₂ fixation and mitigating the risk of photodamage due to absorption of light energy in excess. Eukaryotic photosynthetic organisms evolved an array of pigment-binding proteins called light harvesting complexes constituting the external antenna system in the photosystems, where both light harvesting and activation of photoprotective mechanisms occur. In this work, the balancing role of CP29 and CP26 photosystem II antenna subunits was investigated in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii using CRISPR-Cas9 technology to obtain single and double mutants depleted of monomeric antennas. Absence of CP26 and CP29 impaired both photosynthetic efficiency and photoprotection: Excitation energy transfer from external antenna to reaction centre was reduced, and state transitions were completely impaired. Moreover, differently from higher plants, photosystem II monomeric antenna proteins resulted to be essential for photoprotective thermal dissipation of excitation energy by nonphotochemical quenching.     

Multilayer Hybrid Plasmonic Nano Patch Antenna

This is the first report of a hybrid plasmonic nano patch antenna having metal insulator metal (HMIM) multilayer configuration. It is designed in a footprint area of 1.7 × 1.175 μm² to resonate at 1.55 μm wavelength. The proposed antenna is inset fed by an HMIM plasmonic waveguide for achieving proper impedance matching. It is observed, through electromagnetic numerical simulation, that the proposed plasmonic nano patch antenna emits a directional beam with a bandwidth, gain, and efficiency of 0.194 μm, 8.3 dB, and 96% respectively, which are significantly higher than previously reported designs. Since inset-fed antennas are suitable for developing high-gain antenna array, hence further, we examined antenna performance by designing antenna array. The proposed antenna is practically realizable and can be fabricated using standard semiconductor fabrication process. Moreover, it could be used for numerous chip scale applications such as wireless interconnects energy harvesting, photoemission, photo detection, scattering, heat transfer, spectroscopy, and optical sensing.

     

Circularly Polarized Plasma Curl Antenna for 2.45 GHz Portable RFID Reader

In this paper, a broadband circularly polarized plasma curl antenna for portable RFID reader at 2.45 GHz is proposed. The antenna consists of a glass tube filled with argon gas and of about 1.4 wavelengths curled into one turn. A parametric study for the plasma curl antenna parameters is investigated. A simulated compact model for the portable RFID reader is proposed. The radiation characteristics of the plasma curl antenna enclosed inside a portable reader device are calculated. The behavior of plasma curl antenna is like a metal antenna when the signal is transmitted and received. Plasma antennas have many advantages as their design permit electrical, rather than mechanical control for their radiation characteristics. They are light weight, reconfigurable, can be energized, and de-energized in seconds, which prevent signal degradation. When a particular plasma antenna is not energized, its radiation does not affect the nearby elements and allowing other antennas to transmit or receive without interference. The radiation characteristics of the plasma curl antennas are investigated and analyzed using a finite integral technique.     

Morphometry and ultrastructure of prismatic cristae in mitochondria of a crayfish muscle. A hypothesis of the structural principle

Approximately 40% of the mitochondria in the sphincter muscle of the crayfish vas deferens have prismatic-type cristae. In cross section, the angular cristae have either triangular or rhomboid profiles which are surrounded by a hexagonal array of electron-dense dots. In longitudinal section, these mitochondria exhibit both thick and thin parallel lines, which represent cristae and filaments, respectively. It is postulated that the matrix of the prismatic-type mitochondria is packed with rodlets composed of an electron-dense core and a less dense shell. Close packing of these rodlets results in the regular hexagonal dot array. Deletion of fascicles of 3 or 4 rodlets results in spaces with triangular or rectangular cross sections. Lining of these spaces with membranes results in cristae with triangular or rhomboid cross sections.     

Electrical Impedance Analysis in Plant Tissues8

Electrical impedance spectra (100 Hz–800 kHz) were measuredin leaves of Peperomia obtusifolia L. (a succulent) and Brassicaoleracea L. (cabbage). By measuring impedances at three or moreinter-electrode distances in a single leaf, electrode impedanceand specific tissue impedance were separated. Analysis of impedance data from B. oleracea leaves in relationto an equivalent circuit model showed that leaf developmentwas accompanied by increases in extracellular resistance, cytoplasmicresistance and vacuole interior resistance, together with decreasesin plasma membrane capacitance and tonoplast capacitance. AfterB. oleracea leaves were subjected to a –6 °C freeze-thawstress, extracellular resistance, cytoplasmic resistance andvacuole interior resistance decreased, but plasma membrane capacitanceand tonoplast capacitance did not change. These results indicatethat useful measurements of leaf parameters can be obtainedby this technique. Examination of the electrode impedance spectrum showed thatelectrode insertion produced a damaged collar, 0·4–0·5mm wide, around the electrode. This was confirmed by visualobservation of the damage in P. obtusifolia leaf. Key words: Peperomia obtusifolia L., Brassica oleracea L. (cabbage), electrical impedance, equivalent circuit, electrode polarization     

Biochemical Characterization of Photosystem II Antenna Polypeptides in Grana and Stroma Membranes of Spinach

The photosystem (PS) II antenna system comprises several biochemically and spectroscopically distinct complexes, including light-harvesting complex II (LHCII), chlorophyll-protein complex (CP) 29, CP26, and CP24. LHCII, the most abundant of these, is both structurally and functionally diverse. The photosynthetic apparatus is laterally segregated within the thylakoid membrane into PSI-rich and PSII-rich domains, and the distribution of antenna complexes between these domains has implications for antenna function. We report a detailed analysis of the differences in the polypeptide composition of LHCII, CP29, and CP26 complexes associated with grana and stroma thylakoid fractions from spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.), making use of a very high-resolution denaturing gel system, coupled with immunoblots using monospecific antibodies to identify specific antenna components. We first show that the polypeptide composition of the PSII antenna system is more complex than previously thought. We resolved at least five type I LHCII apoproteins and two to three type II LHCII apoproteins. We also resolved at least two apoproteins each for CP29 and CP26. In state 1-adapted grana and stroma thylakoid membranes, the spectrum of LHCII apoproteins is surprisingly similar. However, in addition to overall quantitative differences, we saw subtle but reproducible qualitative differences in the spectrum of LHCII apoproteins in grana and stroma membrane domains, including two forms of the major type II apoprotein. The implications of these findings for models of PSII antenna function in spinach are discussed.     

Implanted Miniaturized Antenna for Brain Computer Interface Applications: Analysis and Design

Implantable Brain Computer Interfaces (BCIs) are designed to provide real-time control signals for prosthetic devices, study brain function, and/or restore sensory information lost as a result of injury or disease. Using Radio Frequency (RF) to wirelessly power a BCI could widely extend the number of applications and increase chronic in-vivo viability. However, due to the limited size and the electromagnetic loss of human brain tissues, implanted miniaturized antennas suffer low radiation efficiency. This work presents simulations, analysis and designs of implanted antennas for a wireless implantable RF-powered brain computer interface application. The results show that thin (on the order of 100 micrometers thickness) biocompatible insulating layers can significantly impact the antenna performance. The proper selection of the dielectric properties of the biocompatible insulating layers and the implantation position inside human brain tissues can facilitate efficient RF power reception by the implanted antenna. While the results show that the effects of the human head shape on implanted antenna performance is somewhat negligible, the constitutive properties of the brain tissues surrounding the implanted antenna can significantly impact the electrical characteristics (input impedance, and operational frequency) of the implanted antenna. Three miniaturized antenna designs are simulated and demonstrate that maximum RF power of up to 1.8 milli-Watts can be received at 2 GHz when the antenna implanted around the dura, without violating the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) limits.     

THE ORGANIZATION OF CONTRACTILE FILAMENTS IN A MAMMALIAN SMOOTH MUSCLE

Ordered arrays of thin filaments (65 A diameter) along with other apparently random arrangements of thin and thick filaments (100–200 A diameter) are observed in contracted guinea pig taenia coli rapidly fixed in glutaraldehyde. The thin-filament arrays vary from a few to more than 100 filaments in each array. The arrays are scattered among isolated thin and thick filaments. Some arrays are regular such as hexagonal; other arrays tend to be circular. However, few examples of rosettes with regular arrangements of thin filaments surrounding thick filaments are seen. Optical transforms of electron micrographs of thin-filament arrays give a nearest-neighbor spacing of the thin filaments in agreement with the "actin" filament spacing from x-ray diffraction experiments. Many thick filaments are closely associated with thin-filament arrays. Some thick filaments are hollow circles, although triangular shapes are also found. Thin-filament arrays and thick filaments extend into the cell for distances of at least a micron. Partially relaxed taenia coli shows thin-filament arrays but few thick filaments. The suggestion that thick filaments aggregate prior to contraction and disaggregate during relaxation is promoted by these observations. The results suggest that a sliding filament mechanism operates in smooth muscle as well as in striated muscle.     

CMOS microelectrode array for the monitoring of electrogenic cells

Signal degradation and an array size dictated by the number of available interconnects are the two main limitations inherent to standalone microelectrode arrays (MEAs). A new biochip consisting of an array of microelectrodes with fully-integrated analog and digital circuitry realized in an industrial CMOS process addresses these issues. The device is capable of on-chip signal filtering for improved signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), on-chip analog and digital conversion, and multiplexing, thereby facilitating simultaneous stimulation and recording of electrogenic cell activity. The designed electrode pitch of 250 microm significantly limits the space available for circuitry: a repeated unit of circuitry associated with each electrode comprises a stimulation buffer and a bandpass filter for readout. The bandpass filter has corner frequencies of 100 Hz and 50 kHz, and a gain of 1000. Stimulation voltages are generated from an 8-bit digital signal and converted to an analog signal at a frequency of 120 kHz. Functionality of the read-out circuitry is demonstrated by the measurement of cardiomyocyte activity. The microelectrode is realized in a shifted design for flexibility and biocompatibility. Several microelectrode materials (platinum, platinum black and titanium nitride) have been electrically characterized. An equivalent circuit model, where each parameter represents a macroscopic physical quantity contributing to the interface impedance, has been successfully fitted to experimental results.     

Optical Response of Plasmonic Nanohole Arrays: Comparison of Square and Hexagonal Lattices

Nanohole arrays in metal films allow extraordinary optical transmission (EOT); the phenomenon is highly advantageous for biosensing applications. In this article, we theoretically investigate the performance of refractive index sensors, utilizing square and hexagonal arrays of nanoholes, that can monitor the spectral position of EOT signals. We present near- and far-field characteristics of the aperture arrays and investigate the influence of geometrical device parameters in detail. We numerically compare the refractive index sensitivities of the two lattice geometries and show that the hexagonal array supports larger figure-of-merit values due to its sharper EOT response. Furthermore, the presence of a thin dielectric film that covers the gold surface and mimics a biomolecular layer causes larger spectral shifts within the EOT resonance for the hexagonal array. We also investigate the dependence of the transmission responses on hole radius and demonstrate that hexagonal lattice is highly promising for applications demanding strong light transmission.     

LONGITUDINAL IMPEDANCE OF THE SQUID GIANT AXON

Longitudinal alternating current impedance measurements have been made on the squid giant axon over the frequency range from 30 cycles per second to 200 kc. per second. Large sea water electrodes were used and the inter-electrode length was immersed in oil. The impedance at high frequency was approximately as predicted theoretically on the basis of the poorly conducting dielectric characteristics of the membrane previously determined. For the large majority of the axons, the impedance reached a maximum at a low frequency and the reactance then vanished at a frequency between 150 and 300 cycles per second. Below this frequency, the reactance was inductive, reaching a maximum and then approaching zero as the frequency was decreased. The inductive reactance is a property of the axon and requires that it contain an inductive structure. The variation of the impedance with interpolar distance indicates that the inductance is in the membrane. The impedance characteristics of the membrane as calculated from the measured longitudinal impedance of the axon may be expressed by an equivalent membrane circuit containing inductance, capacity, and resistance. For a square centimeter of membrane the capacity of 1 µf with dielectric loss is shunted by the series combination of a resistance of 400 ohms and an inductance of one-fifth henry.     

Structural Analysis of A-Protein of Cucumber Green Mottle Mosaic Virus and Tobacco Mosaic Virus by Synchrotron Small-Angle X-Ray Scattering

The size and shape of A-protein of tobacco mosaic virus coat protein (TMVP) and cucumber green mottle mosaic virus coat protein (CGMMVP) were evaluated by means of small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) using a synchrotron radiation source, complemeted by electron microscopic observations. The results imply that TMV and CGMMV A-proteins are composed of three and two subunits, respectively, stacked in the shape of an isosceles triangular prism at lower ionic strength. Considering the difference of the A-protein structure at higher and lower ionic strength, the globular core structure was proposed as a subunit which might be modeled as a thin isosceles triangular prism composed of four globular cores joined by rather flexible segments. These cores correspond probably to four helical regions in a subunit, and rearrange their relative positions according to the external conditions. A slight rearrangement of core positions in a subunit may result in the formation of A-proteins of various shapes.     

Increasing Biomass Production on Limited Land Area Through an Optimal Planting Arrangement

Planting density is a primary consideration in silviculture; however, planting arrangement is often ignored. Most, if not all, forest plantations are arranged in rectangular or square lattices (i.e., grids). Using a simple mathematical model, we investigate the potential influence of planting arrangement on planting density, biomass yield, and rotation period by assuming that efficiently arranging trees is similar to packing congruent circles on a plane. The hexagonal lattice achieves the densest circle packing on a plane; therefore, a hexagonal or triangular lattice arrangement of stems provides the highest planting density for a given spacing. Using packing density to quantify arrangement efficiency, tree crowns in a hexagonal lattice fill approximately 90.7% of available area at initial canopy contact, while tree crowns in a square lattice fill approximately 78.5% of available area at initial canopy contact. The hexagonal lattice permits about a 15% higher density than the square lattice, which allows canopy closure to occur earlier without any change in individual tree growth. Short rotation woody crop (SRWC) systems are excellent candidates under the model’s assumptions of level stand with even-age monoculture. If belowground resources are non-limiting, a hexagonal lattice arrangement shortens rotation period and thus optimizes the biomass yield per land area over time. Higher productivity over time is central to sustainable and efficient use of limited area for bioenergy and biomass products.     

Microtubules in Interphase Nuclei of Aesculus hippocastanum L.

Interphase nuclei of cambial cells and their derivatives indormant and active, juvenile and mature stems of Aesculus hippocastanumL. contain bundles of microtubules. Each bundle comprises betweenten and 50 microtubules arranged parallel to one another andoften in a paracrystalline hexagonal array. One end of the bundleis associated with the nucleolus and merges into it. No distinctterminal structures have been found, although in some casesthe end distal from the nucleolus lies close to the nuclearmembrane. No definite role can be suggested for these structuresas yet, but their presence in interphase nuclei, coupled withtheir association with the nucleolus, is indicative of involvementin the normal activity of the nucleolus. Aesculus hippocastanum L, microtubules, nucleolus, nucleus     

Spectroscopic properties of PSI-IsiA supercomplexes from the cyanobacterium Synechococcus PCC 7942

The cyanobacterium Synechococcus PCC 7942 grown under iron starvation assembles a supercomplex consisting of a trimeric Photosystem I (PSI) complex encircled by a ring of 18 CP43' or IsiA light-harvesting complexes [Nature 412 (2001) 745]. Here we present a spectroscopic characterization by temperature-dependent absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy, site-selective fluorescence spectroscopy at 5 K, and circular dichroism of isolated PSI-IsiA, PSI and IsiA complexes from this cyanobacterium grown under iron starvation. The results suggest that the IsiA ring increases the absorption cross-section of PSI by about 100%. Each IsiA subunit binds about 16-17 chlorophyll a (Chl a) molecules and serves as an efficient antenna for PSI. Each of the monomers of the trimeric PSI complex contains two red chlorophylls, which presumably give rise to one exciton-coupled dimer and at 5 K absorb and fluoresce at 703 and 713 nm, respectively. The spectral properties of these C-703 chlorophylls are not affected by the presence of the IsiA antenna ring. The spectroscopic properties of the purified IsiA complexes are similar to those of the related CP43 complex from plants, except that the characteristic narrow absorption band of CP43 at 682.5 nm is missing in IsiA.     

Simulation studies of a temporal sequence memory model

Models of circuit action in the mammalian hippocampus have led us to a study of habituation circuits. In order to help model the process of habituation we consider here a memory network designed to learn sequences of inputs separated by various time intervals and to repeat these sequences when cued by their initial portions. The structure of the memory is based on the anatomy of the dentate gyrus region of the mammalian hippocampus. The model consists of a number of arrays of cells called lamellae. Each array consists of four lines of model cells coupled uniformly to neighbors within the array and with some randomness to cells in other lamellae. All model cells operate according to first-order differential equations. Two of the lines of cells in each lamella are coupled such that sufficient excitation by a system input generates a wave of activity that travels down the lamella. Such waves effect dynamic storage of the representation of each input, allowing association connections to form that code both the set of cells stimulated by each input and the time interval between successive inputs. Results of simulation of two networks are presented illustrating the model's operating characteristics and memory capacity.