4,564 research outputs found

    Direct measurement of coating thermal noise in the AEI 10m prototype

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    A thermal noise interferometer for the characterization of thermal noise in high reflectivity mirrors has been commissioned and first direct measurements of coating thermal noise have been performed. This serves as an important step in the improvement of current and future gravitational wave detectors

    Investigation into Photon Emissions as a Side-Channel Leakage in Two Microcontrollers: A Focus on SRAM Blocks

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    Microcontrollers are extensively utilized across a diverse range of applications. However, with the escalating usage of these devices, the risk to their security and the valuable data they process correspondingly intensifies. These devices could potentially be susceptible to various security threats, with side channel leakage standing out as a notable concern. Among the numerous types of side-channel leakages, photon emissions from active devices emerge as a potentially significant concern. These emissions, a characteristic of all semiconductor devices including microcontrollers, occur during their operation. Depending on the operating point and the internal state of the chip, these emissions can reflect the device’s internal operations. Therefore, a malicious individual could potentially exploit these emissions to gain insights into the computations being performed within the device. This dissertation delves into the investigation of photon emissions from the SRAM blocks of two distinct microcontrollers, utilizing a cost-effective setup. The aim is to extract information from these emissions, analyzing them as potential side-channel leakage points. In the first segment of the study, a PIC microcontroller variant is investigated. The quiescent photon emissions from the SRAM are examined. A correlation attack was successfully executed on these emissions, which led to the recovery of the AES encryption key. Furthermore, differential analysis was used to examine the location of SRAM bits. The combination of this information with the application of an image processing method, namely the Structural Similarity Index (SSIM), assisted in revealing the content of SRAM cells from photon emission images. The second segment of this study, for the first time, emphasizes on a RISC-V chip, examining the photon emissions of the SRAM during continuous reading. Probing the photon emissions from the row and column detectors led to the identification of a target word location, which is capable of revealing the AES key. Also, the content of target row was retrieved through the photon emissions originating from the drivers and the SRAM cells themselves. Additionally, the SSIM technique was utilized to determine the address of a targeted word in RISC-V photon emissions which cannot be analyzed through visual inspection. The insights gained from this research contribute to a deeper understanding of side-channel leakage via photon emissions and demonstrate its potential potency in extracting critical information from digital devices. Moreover, this information significantly contributes to the development of innovative security measures, an aspect becoming increasingly crucial in our progressively digitized world

    Development of a sensor for microvibrations measurement in the AlbaSat CubeSat mission

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    openMicrovibrations on spacecraft represent an issue for payloads requiring high pointing accuracy and/or stability over time, and they might represent a particular concern for CubeSats and small satellites that, usually, are not equipped with very-high performance attitude control systems. Hence, collecting reliable measures of the vibration spectra during the operations of a CubeSat represents a significant research activity. This thesis presents the development of a sensor, configured as a payload within the AlbaSat mission, capable of accurately measuring the microvibrations in space, with particular focus on those produced by the Momentum Exchange Devices (MED), i.e., Reaction or Momentum Wheels, that represent one of the most important microvibrations sources. The thesis takes place in the framework of the AlbaSat mission. AlbaSat is a 2U CubeSat developed by a student team of the University of Padova under the “Fly Your Satellite! – Design Booster” programme promoted by the European Space Agency (ESA). The mission has four different objectives: (1) to collect measurements of the space debris environment in-situ, (2) to measure the microvibrations on board the CubeSat, (3) to precisely determine the position of the satellite through laser ranging and (4) to investigate alternative systems for possible Satellite Quantum Communication applications on nanosatellites. The requirements for the correct sizing of the sensor and the chosen physical and functional architecture are defined and presented in the thesis. A meticulous schedule for functional tests is finally outlined, aimed at verifying the correct functionality of the microvibration sensor. These tests serve as a starting point for the future development of the payload.Microvibrations on spacecraft represent an issue for payloads requiring high pointing accuracy and/or stability over time, and they might represent a particular concern for CubeSats and small satellites that, usually, are not equipped with very-high performance attitude control systems. Hence, collecting reliable measures of the vibration spectra during the operations of a CubeSat represents a significant research activity. This thesis presents the development of a sensor, configured as a payload within the AlbaSat mission, capable of accurately measuring the microvibrations in space, with particular focus on those produced by the Momentum Exchange Devices (MED), i.e., Reaction or Momentum Wheels, that represent one of the most important microvibrations sources. The thesis takes place in the framework of the AlbaSat mission. AlbaSat is a 2U CubeSat developed by a student team of the University of Padova under the “Fly Your Satellite! – Design Booster” programme promoted by the European Space Agency (ESA). The mission has four different objectives: (1) to collect measurements of the space debris environment in-situ, (2) to measure the microvibrations on board the CubeSat, (3) to precisely determine the position of the satellite through laser ranging and (4) to investigate alternative systems for possible Satellite Quantum Communication applications on nanosatellites. The requirements for the correct sizing of the sensor and the chosen physical and functional architecture are defined and presented in the thesis. A meticulous schedule for functional tests is finally outlined, aimed at verifying the correct functionality of the microvibration sensor. These tests serve as a starting point for the future development of the payload

    Towards a muon collider

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    A muon collider would enable the big jump ahead in energy reach that is needed for a fruitful exploration of fundamental interactions. The challenges of producing muon collisions at high luminosity and 10 TeV centre of mass energy are being investigated by the recently-formed International Muon Collider Collaboration. This Review summarises the status and the recent advances on muon colliders design, physics and detector studies. The aim is to provide a global perspective of the field and to outline directions for future work

    Physical sketching tools and techniques for customized sensate surfaces

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    Sensate surfaces are a promising avenue for enhancing human interaction with digital systems due to their inherent intuitiveness and natural user interface. Recent technological advancements have enabled sensate surfaces to surpass the constraints of conventional touchscreens by integrating them into everyday objects, creating interactive interfaces that can detect various inputs such as touch, pressure, and gestures. This allows for more natural and intuitive control of digital systems. However, prototyping interactive surfaces that are customized to users' requirements using conventional techniques remains technically challenging due to limitations in accommodating complex geometric shapes and varying sizes. Furthermore, it is crucial to consider the context in which customized surfaces are utilized, as relocating them to fabrication labs may lead to the loss of their original design context. Additionally, prototyping high-resolution sensate surfaces presents challenges due to the complex signal processing requirements involved. This thesis investigates the design and fabrication of customized sensate surfaces that meet the diverse requirements of different users and contexts. The research aims to develop novel tools and techniques that overcome the technical limitations of current methods and enable the creation of sensate surfaces that enhance human interaction with digital systems.Sensorische Oberflächen sind aufgrund ihrer inhärenten Intuitivität und natürlichen Benutzeroberfläche ein vielversprechender Ansatz, um die menschliche Interaktionmit digitalen Systemen zu verbessern. Die jüngsten technologischen Fortschritte haben es ermöglicht, dass sensorische Oberflächen die Beschränkungen herkömmlicher Touchscreens überwinden, indem sie in Alltagsgegenstände integriert werden und interaktive Schnittstellen schaffen, die diverse Eingaben wie Berührung, Druck, oder Gesten erkennen können. Dies ermöglicht eine natürlichere und intuitivere Steuerung von digitalen Systemen. Das Prototyping interaktiver Oberflächen, die mit herkömmlichen Techniken an die Bedürfnisse der Nutzer angepasst werden, bleibt jedoch eine technische Herausforderung, da komplexe geometrische Formen und variierende Größen nur begrenzt berücksichtigt werden können. Darüber hinaus ist es von entscheidender Bedeutung, den Kontext, in dem diese individuell angepassten Oberflächen verwendet werden, zu berücksichtigen, da eine Verlagerung in Fabrikations-Laboratorien zum Verlust ihres ursprünglichen Designkontextes führen kann. Zudem stellt das Prototyping hochauflösender sensorischer Oberflächen aufgrund der komplexen Anforderungen an die Signalverarbeitung eine Herausforderung dar. Diese Arbeit erforscht dasDesign und die Fabrikation individuell angepasster sensorischer Oberflächen, die den diversen Anforderungen unterschiedlicher Nutzer und Kontexte gerecht werden. Die Forschung zielt darauf ab, neuartigeWerkzeuge und Techniken zu entwickeln, die die technischen Beschränkungen derzeitigerMethoden überwinden und die Erstellung von sensorischen Oberflächen ermöglichen, die die menschliche Interaktion mit digitalen Systemen verbessern

    Wearable Sensors and Smart Devices to Monitor Rehabilitation Parameters and Sports Performance: An Overview

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    A quantitative evaluation of kinetic parameters, the joint’s range of motion, heart rate, and breathing rate, can be employed in sports performance tracking and rehabilitation monitoring following injuries or surgical operations. However, many of the current detection systems are expensive and designed for clinical use, requiring the presence of a physician and medical staff to assist users in the device’s positioning and measurements. The goal of wearable sensors is to overcome the limitations of current devices, enabling the acquisition of a user’s vital signs directly from the body in an accurate and non–invasive way. In sports activities, wearable sensors allow athletes to monitor performance and body movements objectively, going beyond the coach’s subjective evaluation limits. The main goal of this review paper is to provide a comprehensive overview of wearable technologies and sensing systems to detect and monitor the physiological parameters of patients during post–operative rehabilitation and athletes’ training, and to present evidence that supports the efficacy of this technology for healthcare applications. First, a classification of the human physiological parameters acquired from the human body by sensors attached to sensitive skin locations or worn as a part of garments is introduced, carrying important feedback on the user’s health status. Then, a detailed description of the electromechanical transduction mechanisms allows a comparison of the technologies used in wearable applications to monitor sports and rehabilitation activities. This paves the way for an analysis of wearable technologies, providing a comprehensive comparison of the current state of the art of available sensors and systems. Comparative and statistical analyses are provided to point out useful insights for defining the best technologies and solutions for monitoring body movements. Lastly, the presented review is compared with similar ones reported in the literature to highlight its strengths and novelties

    Superconducting Circuit Architectures Based on Waveguide Quantum Electrodynamics

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    Quantum science and technology provides new possibilities in processing information, simulating novel materials, and answering fundamental questions beyond the reach of classical methods. Realizing these goals relies on the advancement of physical platforms, among which superconducting circuits have been one of the leading candidates offering complete control and read-out over individual qubits and the potential to scale up. However, most circuit-based multi-qubit architectures only include nearest-neighbor (NN) coupling between qubits, which limits the efficient implementation of low-overhead quantum error correction and access to a wide range of physical models using analog quantum simulation. This challenge can be overcome by introducing non-local degrees of freedom. For example, photons in a shared channel between qubits can mediate long-range qubit-qubit coupling arising from light-matter interaction. In addition, constructing a scalable architecture requires this channel to be intrinsically extensible, in which case a one-dimensional waveguide is an ideal structure providing the extensible direction as well as strong light-matter interaction. In this thesis, we explore superconducting circuit architectures based on light-matter interactions in waveguide quantum electrodynamics (QED) systems. These architectures in return allow us to study light-matter interaction, demonstrating strong coupling in the open environment of a waveguide by employing sub-radiant states resulting from collective effects. We further engineer the waveguide dispersion to enter the topological photonics regime, exploring interactions between qubits that are mediated by photons with topological properties. Finally, towards the goals of quantum information processing and simulation, we settle into a multi-qubit architecture where the photon-mediated interaction between qubits exhibits tunable range and strength. We use this multi-qubit architecture to construct a lattice with tunable connectivity for strongly interacting microwave photons, synthesizing a quantum many-body model to explore chaotic dynamics. The architectures in this thesis introduce scalable beyond-NN coupling between superconducting qubits, opening the door to the exploration of many-body physics with long-range coupling and efficient implementation of quantum information processing protocols.</p

    Development of a new silicon pixel detector with 10 ps time resolution for high luminosity future experiments

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    In this thesis work the results of the characterizations of the 3D-trench TimeSPOT silicon sensors with minimum ionizing particles are described. Such devices have been developed to satisfy the requirements of the LHCb VErtex LOcator detector for the Upgrade II, planned to face the high luminosity conditions. These requirements are a time resolution better than 50 ps per hit, a spatial resolution of the order of 10–20 μm and a radiation hardness up to 6·10^16 1 MeV n_eq/cm^2. In this thesis the characterizations performed both in the laboratory with a 90Sr source and in several test beam campaigns are illustrated. The main measurements done are the time resolution and the detection efficiency before and after the irradiation up to 2.5·10^16 1 MeV n_eq/cm^2

    Design and characterisation of monolithic CMOS detectors for high energy particle physics and SEU radiation tests for ATLAS Inner Tracker Upgrade readout chip

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    This thesis covers the characterisation results and the design of monolithic CMOS detectors designed in TowerJazz 180nm CMOS technology for High Energy Particle Physics applications. Three different detectors have been studied the MALTA, the Mini-MALTA and the MALTA2. The MALTA sensor showed some efficiency losses at the corners of the pixels after irradiation, which meant that it was not suitable for the radiation environments in which it was supposed to be installed. Therefore, the front-end electronics and the fabrication process were modified to overcome this issue. The Mini-MALTA prototype was designed including the above mentioned improvements, fabricated and fully characterised. Finally taking into account all the knowledge acquired during these years of developments another large scale sensor the MALTA2 has been produced which should be radiation tolerant and have very good time resolution. The description and studies of the different architectures used in this family of detectors are covered and a simulation to estimate the bandwidth capabilities have been reported. Furthermore, this work will present characterisation of single event effects in the ITkPixV1, the prototype version of the ATLAS Inner Tracker Upgrade chip for the High Luminosity LHC. Measurements were made in testbeam campaigns with high energy ions and protons to evaluate the level of single event effects in the chip
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