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The fabrication process of a microparabolic reflector using isotropic xenon difluoride Xe F 2 etching technique is presented and analysed through this work for developing infrared antenna-coupled detectors. Although many parametric studies described the behaviour of this process in the literature, the non-linearity of the process and its dramatic dependency on the pattern definition result in great difficulties when adopting the process for developing a particular structure. The main focus of this work is, therefore, to present a detailed etching analysis as dictated in the proposed design providing the proper etching recipe according to the proposed structure design and its associated masking pattern. Deep insights into the process have been highlighted suggesting the necessity of the process assessment in terms of evaluating the three-dimensional etched volume rather than the etched depth. This will potentially solve the non-linearity behaviour and the pattern dependency problem. The optimum etching recipe yields approximately a total volume of 0.354 mm3 through the proper patterning mask. The resultant parabolic cavities have 75 and 13 μ m in their diameter and depth, respectively, as required for the proposed structure. The integration of a microparabolic reflector with such detectors will potentially enhance the specific detectivity of these detectors.

The proliferation of embedded vision in today’s life has necessitated the development of System-on-Chips to perform utmost processing in a single chip rather than discrete components. Embedded vision is bounded by stringent requirements, namely real-time performance, limited energy, and adaptivity to cope with the standards evolution. In this article, an energy-aware self-adaptive System-on-Chip for real-time corner detection is realized on Zynq All Programmable System-on-Chip using Dynamic Partial Reconfiguration. A careful analysis of algorithm and efficient utilization of Zynq resources results in highly parallelized and pipelined architecture outperforms the state-of-the-art. A context-aware configuration scheduler application is developed to adhere to operating context and trades off between video resolution and energy consumption to sustain the uttermost operation time for battery-powered devices while delivering real-time performance. The experiments show that the self-adaptive method achieves 1.77 times longer operation time than a parametrized IP core, with negligible reconfiguration energy overhead. A marginal effect of partial reconfiguration overhead on performance is observed, for instance, only two video frames are dropped for HD1080p60 during the reconfiguration time.

This work is on the design of a fully integrated 0.13-µm CMOS multi-standard power constrained simultaneous noise and input matching low-noise amplifier (PCSNIM LNA). The multi-standard capability is obtained via the implementation of CMOS switches. The input and output matching are fully implemented on a chip, which is uncommon when compared to the existing multi-standard LNA topologies. The multi-standard LNA is operated at 0.9, 1.8, and 2.1 GHz frequencies. The design covered wireless standards of GSM900, DCS1800, and W-CDMA applications. The multi-standard LNA can obtain noise figure as low as 1.72 dB. The third-order intercept point, IIP3, is as high as −4 dBm, while IP1dB is −10 dBm. The power consumption of the design is only 7.4 mW. This resistorless multi-standard LNA design is not just able to operate at three different frequencies but also has a comparable performance with the rest. Its merits are contributed by high linearity and low power.

The ambient vibration-based micro electromechanical systems (MEMS) piezoelectric harvester has become an important subject in most research publications. Providing a green and virtually infinite alternative power source to traditional energy sources, this harvester will significantly expand the applications of wireless sensor networks and other technologies. Using piezoelectric materials to harvest the ambient vibrations that surround a system is one method that has seen a dramatic rise in the power-harvesting applications. The simplicity associated with piezoelectric micro-generators makes them very attractive for MEMS applications in which ambient vibrations are harvested and converted into electric energy. These micro generators can become an alternative to the battery-based solutions in the future, especially for remote systems. In this paper, we proposed a model and presented the simulation of a MEMS-based arrayed energy harvester under ambient vibration excitation using the Coventorware approach. This arrayed cantilever-based MEMS energy harvester that operates under ambient excitation of frequency band of 67 to 70 Hz, within a base acceleration of 0.2 to 1.3 g produces an output power of 6.8 μw and 0.4 volts at 20.1 k-ohms load.

The dome-shaped membrane was designed for the fluidic based flow sensor for the underwater sensing. It has the diameter of 5mm and thickness within 0.2mm. The simple fabrication process for the dome shaped structure was demonstrated using casting and molding processes. The effect of the fabrication process was investigated by measuring the thickness of the dome-shaped membrane for different sample. For the performance analysis, the actual shape which was the same with the fabricated shaped was simulated and compared with the ideal shape using finite element analysis for the same input flow rate. The membrane sensitivity of the actual shape decreased from 163.4 μm/ms-1 to 133.33 μm/ms-1 compared to the ideal shape based on the displacement of the membrane over input fluid velocity.

The structural integrity and aesthetic quality of concrete structure exposed to open-air area are vulnerable to sunlight, heat, moisture and rains, thus resulting in deposition of deteriogenic biofilms, especially on the floor surfaces. Apart from visual inspection, there is a need for scientific approach to assess and quantify the extent of bio-deposition. Our sample is a floor tile, fully exposed to outdoor environment. The study comprises of two folds: at first stage, we employ statistical image analysis technique to analyse and quantify various bio-depositories on the sample. In the next stage, we subject the sample image to undergo fusion process utilising discrete wavelet transform technique. Subsequently, we try to explore the change in the image quality and quantification aftermath image fusion.

This paper emphasis on state-of-the-art of the earlier until the current trend and demand, principles, design considerations, key performance and fabrication technology of RF MEMS switch devices developed over the past few years. RF MEMS switch performance and features such as actuation voltage, insertion loss, isolation and ease with cost of fabrication and applications are compared and discussed.

This paper presents the developments of microfluidic based multidirectional flow sensor inspired from artificial cupula. The proposed flow sensor consists of one-side-electrode and dome-shaped membrane that integrated with microchannel. When the flows impart the dome-shaped membrane, it will displace the liquid inside the microchannel and give changes in capacitance. Computational fluid dynamic analysis for dome structure using ANSYS Fluent software was discussed and compared with the hair structure. The Polydimethylsiloxane material was chosen for main material based on its potential properties to be implemented as a membrane. The micro-stamping technique to form a thin dome-shaped membrane was discussed where the uniform thickness was achieved by using this technique. The experiment was setup for water flow measurement, directionality test and moving object detection. For sensor characterization, the operating frequency and time response of the sensor obtained where respectively to 1.2 kHz and 0.35 s. The sensor was able to measure the flow rate as lower as 10 cm/s in water with the resolution of 5 cm/s. The experiment result also proved that the sensor was capable to detect the flow in multiple directions.

Kalman filtering is a well-established methodology used in various multi-sensor data fusion applications. In our experiment, we first obtain measurements from the accelerometer and gyroscope and fuse them using Kalman filter in an inertial measurement unit (IMU). We estimate Kalman filter output and estimation error. The affect of process noise and measurement noise on estimation error is tested. It is explored that the measurement noise has significant role to increase estimation error in the data fusion process.

The concern for the global environment ensues researchers from various disciplines to work in collaboration to tackle with the issues of sustainability and environmental conservation for well-being of the people. In this study, we have selected and focused on few basic environment-effecting factors such as temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide and oxygen concentration level and referred them as meteorological data. In this paper, we present the development of our own customized hardware setup, environmental monitoring device (EMD) to obtain the data. Utilizing the relationship among these basic parameters, represented in the form of formulas and equations, we tried to encode them using Matlab programming. Data visualization is achieved by plotting the graphs of basic parameters obtained from EMD as well for the derivatives using Matlab programs.

The world is facing the challenge of global warming and climate change issues. The objective of the study is to examine the meteorological data that constitute the environment and their balance has prevailing effect on the global warming. The meteorological data in our study refers to temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide and oxygen. We deploy our own customized hardware setup to obtain the data. Provided with this basic data, many significant parameters such enthalpy, dew point, humidity ratio, actual vapor pressure, saturated vapor pressure, partial vapor pressure and specific volume could be derived. We have presented simple functions in Matlab programming to derive these parameters. Our concluding Matlab program is as good as calculator, and the output is visualized by plotting function.

The deteriogenic biofilms on the outdoor-exposed surfaces of concrete structures impair the structural integrity and esthetic quality. There is a growing need for precise and reliable methods to assess the bio-deterioration in concrete structures and identify the extent of biodeposition. This study proposes statistical image analysis method and application of the neural network classification approach to quantify bio-depositories on flooring surface that is exposed to outdoor environment. The results yield percentages of various bio-depositories on the sample.

The performance of a thermoelectric power generator for powering wireless sensor node has been studied and evaluated. This study covers the results obtained from two configurations of thermoelectric cell with heat source temperatures range from 40 to 230 °C. It was found that the highest output voltage is 9.08 V belong to configuration B with two parallel thermoelectric cells. This configuration was capable to power up sensor node compared to configuration A with the lowest heat source temperature at about 200 °C. To enhance the capability of the configurations, DC boost converter circuit has been developed and tested. By connecting to the DC boost converter, configuration A can power up the wireless sensor node with heat source temperature at about 220 °C while the minimum heat source temperature for configuration B was reduced from 200 to 170 °C. This study identified the optimum operation condition to power up wireless sensor node by thermoelectric power generator for remote application and make conclusion as to how to increase the performance of thermoelectric power generator by introducing DC boost converter.

Presented is an SU-8 microcantilever sensor with integrated piezoresistors made of a mixture of SU-8 polymer and silver nanoparticles. The resulting composite is a spin-coatable and ultraviolet patternable conductive polymer, which can be easily incorporated with any SU-8-based microdevice. The microfabrication technique used in this work is based on adhesive bonding of the cantilever layers with the thick support base to obtain a three-dimensional structures device, which is a cost-effective and fast fabrication process. Based on the current-voltage ( I - V ) test, the fabricated piezoresistors exhibit a linear resistance characteristic with good conductivity. The gauge factor calculated from the deflection test was obtained to be as high as 26.3, demonstrating the capability for embedded SU-8/Ag piezoresistors to improve sensitivity when using polymeric material as a sensor platform.

Multi-sensor data fusion provides significant advantages over single source data to achieve an improved accuracy and better precision. Decentralized data fusion approach is one in which features are extracted and processed individually and finally fused to obtain global estimates. The paper presents decentralized data fusion algorithm using factor analysis model. Factor analysis is a statistical method used to study the effect and interdependence of various factors within a system. The proposed algorithm fuses accelerometer and gyroscope data in an inertial measurement unit (IMU). Simulations are carried out on Matlab platform to illustrate the algorithm.

This study is the first to demonstrate dimensional optimization of nanowire-complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor inverter. Noise margins and inflection voltage of transfer characteristics are used as limiting factors in this optimization. Results indicate that optimization depends on both dimensions ratio and digital voltage level (Vdd). Diameter optimization reveals that when Vdd increases, the optimized value of (Dp/Dn) decreases. Channel length optimization results show that when Vdd increases, the optimized value of Ln decreases and that of (Lp/Ln) increases. Dimension ratio optimization reveals that when Vdd increases, the optimized value of Kp/Kn decreases, and silicon nanowire transistor with suitable dimensions (higher Dp and Ln with lower Lp and Dn) can be fabricated.

A new high speed Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) pixel readout circuitry consuming a small area is proposed. The whole schematic is designed using Silterra 0.18 \(\mu \)m CMOS technology and consists of 12 small-sized MOSFETs that are one-third smaller than other solutions. The time taken to capture an image of the inner body is better than that in the literature, although the same input current is used. Simulation result shows that at the minimum input current of 3 nA, the image for the three pixels at the same row can be obtained clearly at every clock cycle.

Drain-induced barrier lowering (DIBL) is crucial in many applications of silicon nanowire transistors. This paper determined the effect of the dimensions of nanowires on DIBL. The MuGFET simulation tool was used to investigate the characteristics of the transistors. The transfer characteristics of transistors with different dimensions were simulated. The results show that longer nanowires with smaller diameters and lower oxide thickness decrease DIBL and tend to possess the best transistor characteristics.

Implementation of a data fusion system is a complex task. Several of the most critical issues related to the implementation are requirements analysis, sensor selection, architecture selection, algorithm selection, software implementation and testing and evaluation. A number of data fusion frameworks have been developed to serve the purpose. This article reviews the literature on data fusion models, as well as aspects of systems engineering related to multisensory fusion. A novel generic framework is proposed to link data fusion system engineering with algorithm engineering paradigm. A new term called ‘impact factor’ is introduced to designate data fusion performance research findings.

Despite its excellent performance in microelectronic industry, silicon was not able to perform well in photonic devices arena. This is because the silicon has never been a good optical source mainly due to its indirect band gap structure. Many of the device functionalities in silicon have been reported, with an exception of – until recently – a reliable optical source. Silicon is a nonlinear material which makes use of its nonlinearities to realize various functionalities. This paper presents a theoretical treatment of generating and enhancing third-harmonic field which may be used as optical source, crystal state monitoring and all-optical signal processing applications.

The current paper presents an improved bandgap voltage reference (BGR) that utilizes curvature-corrected current generators which compensate for the voltage reference at lower and higher temperature range. The voltage reference is operated with a supply voltage of 2.5V to achieve an output reference of 1.1835V. The temperature coefficient achieved from the circuit is 1.342ppm/°C, resulting from temperature changes between -50°C to 125°C, sixfold improvement from first-order BGR. The proposed circuit is simulated using Silterra 0.13µm CMOS technology.

A mathematical model for the calculation of the output characteristics of amorphous silicon hydrogenated (a-Si:H) ion-sensitive field-effect transistors (ISFET) is developed, which depends on the integration of the conductivity channel versus gate voltage curve at fixed drain voltage. Single curve integration was changed to integration with many simple lines to obtain the ID − VD characteristics using computer programming. The results of this model were tested with those of experiments. © 2011 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

An artificial hair cell sensor is the current technology based on a biological inspiration and is widely used in underwater applications including the glider, robotic and autonomous surface vehicle. These papers discuss a few strategies in relation to the principles of sensing, fabrication, performance, and preliminary measurement data. The MEMS flow sensor is generally needed to replace existing commercial sensors that are inadequate for some applications. Material also provides some advantages to the hair cell sensor. Some materials such as Polydimethylsilaxone and Polyurethane have been investigated. The sensing element is reviewed including the doped piezoresistors, strain gauge and force sensitive resistors. Performance and result of each design will be presented briefly. Finally, the importance and the need for modeling, simulation and experiments will be reviewed based on the latest achievements on that particular research area.

The simplicity associated with the piezoelectric micro-generators makes it very attractive for MEMS applications, especially for remote systems. In this paper we reviewed the work carried out by researchers during the last three years. The improvements in experimental results obtained in the vibration-based MEMS piezoelectric energy harvesters show very good scope for MEMS piezoelectric harvesters in the field of power MEMS in the near future.

Antenna coupled Infrared (IR) detectors are increasingly researched for their promising fast response, uncooled operation and CMOS compatibility. However, their three order of magnitude lower detectivity compared to other commercial IR detectors is the main obstacle to be commercialized. One of the directions that is expected to increase the detectivity is through decreasing the expected sever losses as well as crosstalk that may arise due to surface waves. This direction is addressed in this work by integrating the detector with a spherical reflector which is presented here for the first time. The performance enhancement of the dipole antenna by spherical reflector backed structure is thus studied here through simulation using CST. The simulation shows a 20 dB increase in the gain of the spherical reflector backed structure compared to the simple dipole without the reflector.

This paper presents the temperature characteristics of a silicon nanowire transistor and its use as a temperature sensor. The OMEN nanowire simulation tool was used to investigate the temperature characteristics of the transistor. Current–voltage characteristics with different values of temperature for three orientations were simulated. The metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS) diode connection suggests the use of the silicon nanowire transistor as a temperature nanosensor. © 2012 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

The fluidic based multidirectional flow sensor inspired from artificial cupula was presented in this paper. It is consists of dome-shaped membrane, microchannel and one-side electrode with implementation of electrical double layer capacitor as a sensing element. The PDMS with ratio 20:1 was selected as a material because it is suitable to be implemented as a membrane. The micro-stamping technique for fabrication of dome-shaped membrane was proposed where the uniform thickness of membrane can be achieved. The operating frequency of the sensor using methanol was 1.5 kHz. The flow measurement was done by using water channel which flow rate 10 to 40 cm/s was applied with the resolution of 5 cm/s. The directionality tests for flow direction and angle also were carried out and it is proved that the sensor was able to detect the flow in omnidirectional directions.

Antenna coupled Infrared (IR) detectors attracted many authors for its promising room temperature operation, high speed, CMOS compatibility and low design complexity. Due to many factors, however, sever losses are introduced limiting the detectivity of these devices. One of the major sources of these losses is the substrate modes. We present for the first time a design simulation for a spherical reflector backed antenna proposed to increase the detectivity of these detectors. A lower substrate modes loss and decreased cross talk between neighboring detectors are expected via this design. The spherical reflector also offers an increase in the directive gain of the antenna as well as shielding for the detector from the adjacent detectors in imaging arrays. This spherical reflector backed antenna can be then coupled either with metal- oxide-metal or bolometer for long wave IR detection. The performance enhancement of the dipole antenna by spherical reflector backed structure is presented here. The simulation shows a 20 dB increase in the gain of the spherical reflector backed structure compared to the simple dipole without the reflector.

This paper presents the design of five-stage current controlled inductor-less ring oscillator that were simulated in Silterra 0.18um CMOS Technology with oscillation frequencies up to 5.99 GHz. The design uses cross coupled MOS devices along with active inductor (thus inductorless) and controlled by current source to aid in switching speed and to improve the noise parameters. The simulations show that the five-stage oscillator achieves frequency in the range of 3.78GHz to 5.99GHz. The simulated phase noise of the same design was -115.67 dBc/Hz at 1MHz offset with a center frequency of 5.99GHz.

This paper presents the deployment wireless sensor network for paddy field crop application. The system can monitor pH level and water level in the paddy field crop. The calibration and system design of the sensor nodes were discussed. The sensor nodes installed at the Titi Serong Paddy field Crop, Malaysia. The system uses wireless data transmission to enable farmers to monitor continuously the water level and pH level at home without constant visits to the paddy field. This system can significantly reduce farmer workload while increasing crop yield.

This paper presents the development of prototype system for monitoring and computing greenhouse gases (GHG) with Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) deployment for collecting data for different nodes. This system is based on wireless ZigBee technology that transfers the data wirelessly to UAV, which function is as a router, from which data is sent again to a data logger. An ATMEGA328P microcontroller is used to compute parameters such as CO 2 , O 2 , temperature and humidity. All the environmental parameters are measured on real time and are being stored in Secured Digital (SD) card for every 30 seconds interval. The data is collected at Engineering Campus, Universiti Sains Malaysia in Nibong Tebal, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia using UAV at several nodes. The results show that the system is able to trace and record CO 2 , O 2 , temperature and humidity level, which are important parameters for studies related to global warming.

Gesture recognition system is a system to interpret movement of hand or head via algorithms. Algorithms to interpret gesture are in the form of software, hardware or combination of both. The main goal of gesture recognition system is to enable humans to communicate with machine. This paper present the development of wireless Bluetooth hand gesture recognition system using six 3-axis accelerometers embedded in a glove and a database system in a computer. This system can recognize any sampled data saved in the database while promoting maximum portability and mobility to the user via wireless Bluetooth technology. Analyses such as static data, dynamic data, and average recognition rates relationships are discussed in this paper.

This paper presents a fully-integrated dual-band concurrent CMOS low noise amplifier (LNA) which is implemented in Global Foundries 0.13 um RF CMOS technology. The LNA is designed to receive signals at 2.45 and 5.25 GHz frequency bands simultaneously. The concurrent operation of the proposed LNA makes it suitable for WLAN (802.11 b/g/a) applications. Based on post layout simulation results, this design achieved the power gain of 16 dB at 2.45 GHz and 11.7 dB at 5.25 GHz, the NF of 3 dB at 2.45 GHz and 4.3 dB at 5.25 GHz and the input and output return loss of −14 dB at the desired frequencies. Total power consumption of this design is only 6.5 mW.

This paper presents the novel fluidic based capacitive pressure sensor. The electrical double layer capacitor (EDLC) concept was applied as a sensing method. The methanol was selected as an electrolyte due to its liquid properties such as low surface tension and dielectric permittivity. The circular membrane and microchannel were fabricated using PDMS material and the one side electrode was fabricated on the printed circuit board (PCB). PDMS was used as an insulator on the electrode to allow the formation of the ionic layer. The value of capacitance depends on the liquid movement inside the microchannel. The result of membrane deflections for PDMS membrane with dimension 2.8mm×2.8mm×1.5mm deviated compared to the simulation where it was assumed that the simulation model is was linear. From the experimental results, the operating frequency, response time and sensitivity of the sensor were 1.2 kHz, 0.21 s and 0.033 pF/kPa, respectively.

This paper presents two novel designs for narrowband tunable low-noise amplifier implementation operating at two frequency standards of 850 MHz and 1900 MHz (cellular frequencies such as GSM, CDMA and DCS standards). Both designs benefits from a simple cascode topology with tunable input and output matching networks. Two novel methods to tune the input resonating frequency are introduced: (1) switched transistor width technique, and (2) switched extra Miller and gate-source capacitances technique. Each technique shows its own pros and cons. A comparison between the post-layout simulations results of two designs is made while they are fully matched in desired frequencies. This paper also gives a comparison table between these designs and other similar works in terms of RF performance. The 0.13-μm RF CMOS tunable LNAs have a minimum and maximum power dissipations of 2 and 4 mW, respectively, depending on the tuned resonating frequency.

This paper proposed a novel tunable MEMS solenoid inductor. This tunable solenoid inductor benefits from a liquid-injected core which varies the permeability of the core corresponding to the level of injection of the liquid; hence, the change in permeability of the core causes the change in the inductance. In this work, HFSS is used for 3D EM simulation. The proposed Solenoid inductor is simulated in Silicon substrate with Copper metal as the coil and injected salted water (CaCl2 solved in water) as the solenoid core. The similar previous works for tunable MEMS inductor employing ferromagnetic cores and liquid-based spiral inductors could not exceed an operating frequency of 2 GHz and a Q factor of 12. Here, a maximum Q factor of 18 and tuning range of 60% were achieved at 18 GHz. Also, the implementation procedure of the proposed variable solenoid inductor is simpler and more cost-effective than the other works.

This paper presents the development of the novel fluidic based one side electrode pressure sensor. The structure of the sensor consists of container and an electrode. For the container, the membrane and microchannel were combined in one structure. Meanwhile, the design of the electrode was extended from the pattern of coplanar electrode based on the previous study. The microfluidic technology by using a small amount of liquid as a sensing element was proposed to measure the external pressure. When the external pressure was applied to the sensor, the membrane was deflected and the liquid displaced inside the microchannel. The sensing electrode measured the changes using electrical double layer concepts and gave the output in capacitance. The sensor was successfully fabricated for electrode using printed circuit board (PCB) process and the container using polymer fabrication process. The polymer such as PDMS was chosen because it was suitable to be implemented as a membrane. The methanol was used as a liquid due to its dielectric constant. The data experiment was recorded and measured using LCR meter for different applied pressure. The capacitance response was demonstrated for pressure 2kPa until 30kPa. The sensitivity of the sensor was 0.06pF/kPa. Also, the standard deviation of output capacitance equaled to 0.04.

This paper presents the deployment of a wireless water-quality monitoring system to a paddy crop plantation. The developed system measures water quality parameters, namely, temperature and dissolved oxygen, in real-time and sends the data through wireless communication to the receiver. The receiver is located inside a farmhouse. The maximum distance between the sensing node and the receiver is approximately 1.3 km. The farmer can obtain the water quality information instantly, unlike the traditional method that requires several days to a week to determine the water quality result. The developed system can significantly reduce farmer workload by enabling real-time water-quality monitoring.

This work aims to validate the 2D Finite Element Model (FEM) for estimating the capacitance changes across a microchannel with coplanar electrodes configuration employed. Such electrodes configuration becomes popular in microfluidic-based application where the sensing activity occurs inside a microchannel. ANSYS 12.1 is used to built the 2D model of the structure. The work begin by building the FEM model to find the capacitance per unit length, C/l or C* of different combination of coplanar structures. The variation yields an error of less than 17% as compared to analytical equation with both models having the same trend of capacitance changes. Then, based on the theory of capacitance in parallel, both models are further verified experimentally using a fabricated sensor device that employs a selected structure combination. Comparing the FEM and analytical model to the experimental measurement, the result shows the error of 5% and 24% for both models, respectively.

This paper presents simulations of a vibration based piezoelectric raindrop energy harvester to investigate design parameters that directly affect the performance of the device. Combination of diaphragm and cantilevers is considered for the study and the device is simulated using CoventorWare of multi physics finite element analysis. Polyvinylidene fluoride is used as piezoelectric material due to non-toxic characteristic and easiness to shape into sturdy panels, whereas Aluminium as the electrode. The effects of design parameter such as thickness of piezoelectric material, displacement during vibration and maximum pressure applied on the performance of the device are analysed. Results show that the thickness of these materials played a significant role in displacement and output power.

This paper presents the temperature characteristics of silicon nanowire transistors (SiNWTs) and examines the effect of temperature on transfer characteristics, threshold voltage, I(ON)/I(OFF) ratio, drain-induced barrier lowering (DIBL), and sub-threshold swing (SS). The (MuGFET) simulation tool was used to investigate the temperature characteristics of a transistor. The findings reveal the negative effect of higher working temperature on the use of SiNWTs in electronic circuits, such as digital circuits and amplifiers circuits, because of the lower I(ON)/I(OFF) ratio, higher DIBL, and higher SS at higher temperature. Moreover, the ON state is the optimum condition for using a transistor as a temperature nano-sensor.

Microfluidic technology has given major contribution to the advancement of the sensor especially in the development of microchannel. Previously, we proposed the design structure consist of microchannel which is integrated with dome-shaped container and electrode. The underwater flow sensor generally used in aqua robotic and underwater vehicle for the monitoring and surveillance. The fluid flow gives drag force to the dome-shaped which resulting some displacement and causes the liquid inside the microchannel moving. In this paper, the performance of microchannel had been simulated and discussed in order to optimize the microchannel based on the variation of height and the selection of liquid. The computational fluid dynamic (CFD) FLUENT software was used for the simulation of microchannel. From the CFD, the velocity profile has been analyzed for under and fully develop region to study the fluid flow behavior. The velocity for variation microchannel height 300μm until 1100μm was plotted where the channel with large dimension has an advantage in order to make the fluid flow smooth. In order to achieve the small scale of sensor, we limited the channel size to 400μm. Another factor that influences the fluid flow inside the microchannel is properties of liquid. A few liquids such as methanol, ethanol, water and propylene carbonate were selected. The important property we consider in selection of the right liquid is the surface tension where is it related to the kinematic viscosity. From the simulation, we prove that the liquid that having lowest kinematic viscosity and low surface tension such as methanol is have better performance than another liquid for sensing purpose.

This paper represents the temperature characteristics of silicon nanowire transistor of rectangular cross-section, temperature effect on transfer characteristics, I ON /1 oFF ratio and sub-threshuld swing was studied. OMEN nanowire simulation tool was used to investigate temperature characteristics of transistor with three types of orientations. The findings of the current study reveal that and are the best types of orientations to be used in SiNWT for the temperature application of electronic circuits, such as digital circuits and amplifiers, because of the high I ON /1 oFF ratio and lower SS at these orientations. Moreover, the best orientation for temperature sensor was because of the larger carrier velocity and smaller channel resistance.

This paper shows the effect of the dimensions of nanowires on threshold voltage, ON/OFF current ratio, and sub-threshold slope. These parameters are critical factors of the characteristics of silicon nanowire transistors. The MuGFET simulation tool was used to investigate the characteristics of a transistor. Current-voltage characteristics with different dimensions were simulated. Results show that long nanowires with low diameter and oxide thickness tend to have the best transistor characteristics.

This paper presents a fully integrated two-stage narrow-band low noise amplifier which optimized to work in 2.45 GHz center frequency. The topology of inductive source degenerated cascode based on power-constrained simultaneous noise and input matching (PCSNIM) technique has been adopted to make the LNA suitable for low power applications based on 0.13µm Silterra CMOS technology. Post layout simulation results show power gain of 22 dB, NF of 2.06 dB, S11 of −19 dB and S22 of −12 dB while consuming the DC current of 4 mA at supply voltage of 1.2V.

This paper presents a dual-stage LNA design which is enhanced for gain, linearity and noise figure under a certain power constraint. The LNA benefits from an inductively-degenerated cascode amplifier in the first stage which is followed by a common-source amplifier as the second stage. Two techniques are used to improve the linearity of this 24-dB gain LNA while maintaining the noise figure equal to 2 dB. An input 1-dB gain compression point of −21 dBm was achieved at 2.45-GHz operating frequency. The 0.13-µm CMOS LNA draws a 4-mA current from a 1.2-volt power supply.

Kinetic energy in vibration form is considered as one of potential renewable energy that may power up wireless micro-system. This energy can be converted into electrical energy via vibration energy harvester which makes use of Faraday's law of induction. The harvester generally consists of cantilever as spring, magnets and coils. Two magnets are arranged on the bottom and top at one end of cantilever while another end is fixed. The coils are placed beside two sides of the magnets. This paper presents a design and modelling of harvester with high permeability material. The main objective of this paper is to investigate the impact of placing high permeability material besides the coil in order to enhance the performance of the harvester. Analyses are conducted by comparing the magnetic flux density for different configurations. The magnetic flux density along the coils is reported 0.149 T, 0.228 T and 0.21 T for Configuration I, II, and III, respectively. The performance of Configuration III is optimized by vary the height and thickness of high permeability material to obtain 0.24 T along the coil. Electromotive force generation among configurations also presented.

This paper presents the initial modeling on the biomimetic flow sensor based fish dome-shaped cupula for underwater sensing. Fish depend on this cupula to monitor the flow fields especially for maneuvering and survival underwater. We proposed the design structure and the principle of sensing using microchannel which is consist of liquid and electrolyte. PDMS material was chosen because it is easy to deform and soft. By using a computational fluid dynamic and finite element method, the optimal performance was obtained by optimizing the geometrical dimension of the radius and thickness of the dome. The sensor performance is measured on the basis of displacement and strain. The sensitivity of the sensor has been investigated by using different radius and thickness of the dome. Dome with a radius of 0.2mm until 1.2mm was chosen for this study. The resulting in a maximum displacement is 0.27μm and the strain is 3.98E-4 for a flow rate of 1m/s. Simulation results show that the sensitivity of the dome is a maximum when the radius of the dome at the maximum and the thickness of the dome at the minimum.