24,246 research outputs found
On the Physical Design of Molecular Communication Receiver Based on Nanoscale Biosensors
Molecular communications (MC), where molecules are used to encode, transmit,
and receive information, is a promising means of enabling the coordination of
nanoscale devices. The paradigm has been extensively studied from various
aspects, including channel modeling and noise analysis. Comparatively little
attention has been given to the physical design of molecular receiver and
transmitter, envisioning biological synthetic cells with intrinsic molecular
reception and transmission capabilities as the future nanomachines. However,
this assumption leads to a discrepancy between the envisaged applications
requiring complex communication interfaces and protocols, and the very limited
computational capacities of the envisioned biological nanomachines. In this
paper, we examine the feasibility of designing a molecular receiver, in a
physical domain other than synthetic biology, meeting the basic requirements of
nanonetwork applications. We first review the state-of-the-art biosensing
approaches to determine whether they can inspire a receiver design. We reveal
that nanoscale field effect transistor based electrical biosensor technology
(bioFET) is a particularly useful starting point for designing a molecular
receiver. Focusing on bioFET-based molecular receivers with a conceptual
approach, we provide a guideline elaborating on their operation principles,
performance metrics and design parameters. We then provide a simple model for
signal flow in silicon nanowire (SiNW) FET-based molecular receiver. Lastly, we
discuss the practical challenges of implementing the receiver and present the
future research avenues from a communication theoretical perspective
Diffusion Based Molecular Communication: Principle, Key Technologies, and Challenges
Molecular communication (MC) is a kind of communication technology based on
biochemical molecules for internet of bio-nano things, in which the biochemical
molecule is used as the information carrier for the interconnection of
nano-devices. In this paper, the basic principle of diffusion based MC and the
corresponding key technologies are comprehensively surveyed. In particular, the
state-of-the-art achievements relative to the diffusion based MC are discussed
and compared, including the system model, the system performance analysis with
key influencing factors, the information coding and modulation techniques.
Meanwhile, the multi-hop nano-network based on the diffusion MC is presented as
well. Additionally, given the extensiveness of the research area, open issues
and challenges are presented to spur future investigations, in which the
involvement of channel model, information theory, self-organizing nano-network,
and biochemical applications are put forward
Using spatial partitioning to reduce the bit error rate of diffusion-based molecular communications
This work builds on our earlier work on designing demodulators for
diffusion-based molecular communications using a Markovian approach. The
demodulation filters take the form of an ordinary differential equation (ODE)
which computes the log-posteriori probability of observing a transmission
symbol given the continuous history of receptor activities. A limitation of our
earlier work is that the receiver is assumed to be a small cubic volume called
a voxel. In this work, we extend the maximum a-posteriori demodulation to the
case where the receiver may consist of multiple voxels and derive the ODE for
log-posteriori probability calculation. This extension allows us to study
receiver behaviour of different volumes and shapes. In particular, it also
allows us to consider spatially partitioned receivers where the chemicals in
the receiver are not allowed to mix. The key result of this paper is that
spatial partitioning can be used to reduce bit-error rate in diffusion-based
molecular communications.Comment: 39 pages, 20 figures, submitted for possible publication in IEE
MAC Protocols for Terahertz Communication: A Comprehensive Survey
Terahertz communication is emerging as a future technology to support
Terabits per second link with highlighting features as high throughput and
negligible latency. However, the unique features of the Terahertz band such as
high path loss, scattering and reflection pose new challenges and results in
short communication distance. The antenna directionality, in turn, is required
to enhance the communication distance and to overcome the high path loss.
However, these features in combine negate the use of traditional Medium access
protocols. Therefore novel MAC protocol designs are required to fully exploit
their potential benefits including efficient channel access, control message
exchange, link establishment, mobility management, and line-of-sight blockage
mitigation. An in-depth survey of Terahertz MAC protocols is presented in this
paper. The paper highlights the key features of the Terahertz band which should
be considered while designing an efficient Terahertz MAC protocol, and the
decisions which if taken at Terahertz MAC layer can enhance the network
performance. Different Terahertz applications at macro and nano scales are
highlighted with design requirements for their MAC protocols. The MAC protocol
design issues and considerations are highlighted. Further, the existing MAC
protocols are also classified based on network topology, channel access
mechanisms, and link establishment strategies as Transmitter and Receiver
initiated communication. The open challenges and future research directions on
Terahertz MAC protocols are also highlighted.Comment: Submitted to IEEE Communication Surveys and Tutorials Journa
SMIET: Simultaneous Molecular Information and Energy Transfer
The performance of communication systems is fundamentally limited by the loss
of energy through propagation and circuit inefficiencies. In this article, we
show that it is possible to achieve ultra low energy communications at the
nano-scale, if diffusive molecules are used for carrying data. Whilst the
energy of electromagnetic waves will inevitably decay as a function of
transmission distance and time, the energy in individual molecules does not.
Over time, the receiver has an opportunity to recover some, if not all of the
molecular energy transmitted. The article demonstrates the potential of
ultra-low energy simultaneous molecular information and energy transfer (SMIET)
through the design of two different nano-relay systems, and the discusses how
molecular communications can benefit more from crowd energy harvesting than
traditional wave-based systems
A Novel Time-Based Modulation Scheme in Time-Asynchronous Channels for Molecular Communications
In this paper, a novel time-based modulation scheme is proposed in the
time-asynchronous channel for diffusion-based molecular communication systems
with drift. Based on this modulation scheme, we demonstrate that the sample
variance of information molecules' arrival time approximately follows a
noncentral chi-squared distribution. According to its conditional probability
density function (PDF), the asynchronous receiver designs are deduced based on
the maximum likelihood (ML) detection, with or without background noise in the
channel environment. Since the proposed schemes can be applied to the case of
transmitting multiple information molecules, simulation results reveal that the
bit error ratio (BER) performance improves with the increase of the number of
released information molecules. Furthermore, when the background noise is not
negligible, our proposed asynchronous scheme outperforms the asynchronous
modulation techniques based on encoding information on the time between two
consecutive release of information molecules.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figure
A Physical Channel Model for Wired Nano-Communication Networks
In this paper, we propose a new end-to-end system for wired
nano-communication networks using a self-assembled polymer. The self-assembly
of a polymer creates a channel between the transmitter and the receiver in the
form of a conductive nanowire that uses electrons as carriers of information.
We derive the channel's analytical model and its master equation to study the
dynamic process of the polymer self-assembly. We validate the analytical model
with numerical and Monte-Carlo simulations. Then, we approximate the master
equation by a one-dimensional Fokker-Planck equation and we solve this equation
analytically and numerically. We formulate the expressions of the polymer
elongation rate, its diffusion coefficient and the nullcline to study the
distribution and the stability of the self-assembled nanowire. This study shows
promising results for realizing stable polymer-based wired nanonetworks that
can achieve high throughput
A molecular communications model for drug delivery
This paper considers the scenario of a targeted drug delivery system, which
consists of deploying a number of biological nanomachines close to a biological
target (e.g. a tumor), able to deliver drug molecules in the diseased area.
Suitably located transmitters are designed to release a continuous flow of drug
molecules in the surrounding environment, where they diffuse and reach the
target. These molecules are received when they chemically react with compliant
receptors deployed on the receiver surface. In these conditions, if the release
rate is relatively high and the drug absorption time is significant, congestion
may happen, essentially at the receiver site. This phenomenon limits the drug
absorption rate and makes the signal transmission ineffective, with an
undesired diffusion of drug molecules elsewhere in the body. The original
contribution of this paper consists of a theoretical analysis of the causes of
congestion in diffusion-based molecular communications. For this purpose, it is
proposed a reception model consisting of a set of pure loss queuing systems.
The proposed model exhibits an excellent agreement with the results of a
simulation campaign made by using the Biological and Nano-Scale communication
simulator version 2 (BiNS2), a well-known simulator for molecular
communications, whose reliability has been assessed through in-vitro
experiments. The obtained results can be used in rate control algorithms to
optimally determine the optimal release rate of molecules in drug delivery
applications
A Comprehensive Survey of Recent Advancements in Molecular Communication
With much advancement in the field of nanotechnology, bioengineering and
synthetic biology over the past decade, microscales and nanoscales devices are
becoming a reality. Yet the problem of engineering a reliable communication
system between tiny devices is still an open problem. At the same time, despite
the prevalence of radio communication, there are still areas where traditional
electromagnetic waves find it difficult or expensive to reach. Points of
interest in industry, cities, and medical applications often lie in embedded
and entrenched areas, accessible only by ventricles at scales too small for
conventional radio waves and microwaves, or they are located in such a way that
directional high frequency systems are ineffective. Inspired by nature, one
solution to these problems is molecular communication (MC), where chemical
signals are used to transfer information. Although biologists have studied MC
for decades, it has only been researched for roughly 10 year from a
communication engineering lens. Significant number of papers have been
published to date, but owing to the need for interdisciplinary work, much of
the results are preliminary. In this paper, the recent advancements in the
field of MC engineering are highlighted. First, the biological, chemical, and
physical processes used by an MC system are discussed. This includes different
components of the MC transmitter and receiver, as well as the propagation and
transport mechanisms. Then, a comprehensive survey of some of the recent works
on MC through a communication engineering lens is provided. The paper ends with
a technology readiness analysis of MC and future research directions.Comment: Accepted for publication in IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorial
A Survey of Biological Building Blocks for Synthetic Molecular Communication Systems
Synthetic molecular communication (MC) is a new communication engineering
paradigm which is expected to enable revolutionary applications such as smart
drug delivery and real-time health monitoring. The design and implementation of
synthetic MC systems (MCSs) at nano- and microscale is very challenging. This
is particularly true for synthetic MCSs employing biological components as
transmitters and receivers or as interfaces with natural biological MCSs.
Nevertheless, since such biological components have been optimized by nature
over billions of years, using them in synthetic MCSs is highly promising. This
paper provides a survey of biological components that can potentially serve as
the main building blocks, i.e., transmitter, receiver, and signaling particles,
for the design and implementation of synthetic MCSs. Nature uses a large
variety of signaling particles of different sizes and with vastly different
properties for communication among biological entities. Here, we focus on three
important classes of signaling particles: cations (specifically protons and
calcium ions), neurotransmitters (specifically acetylcholine, dopamine, and
serotonin), and phosphopeptides. For each of these candidate signaling
particles, we present several specific transmitter and receiver structures
mainly built upon proteins that are capable of performing the distinct
physiological functionalities required from the transmitters and receivers of
MCSs. Moreover, we present options for both microscale implementation of MCSs
as well as the micro-to-macroscale interfaces needed for experimental
evaluation of MCSs. Furthermore, we outline new research directions for the
implementation and the theoretical design and analysis of the proposed
transmitter and receiver architectures.Comment: 70 pages, 11 figures, 9 tables; Accepted for publication in the IEEE
Communications Surveys & Tutorial
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