Analysis and application of digital spectral warping in analog and mixed-signal testing

Spectral warping is a digital signal processing transform which shifts the frequencies contained within a signal along the frequency axis. The Fourier transform coefficients of a warped signal correspond to frequency-domain 'samples' of the original signal which are unevenly spaced along the frequency axis. This property allows the technique to be efficiently used for DSP-based analog and mixed-signal testing. The analysis and application of spectral warping for test signal generation, response analysis, filter design, frequency response evaluation, etc. are discussed in this paper along with examples of the software and hardware implementation

Realization of Analog Wavelet Filter using Hybrid Genetic Algorithm for On-line Epileptic Event Detection

© 2020 The Author(s). This open access work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. For more information, see http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.As the evolution of traditional electroencephalogram (EEG) monitoring unit for epilepsy diagnosis, wearable ambulatory EEG (WAEEG) system transmits EEG data wirelessly, and can be made miniaturized, discrete and social acceptable. To prolong the battery lifetime, analog wavelet filter is used for epileptic event detection in WAEEG system to achieve on-line data reduction. For mapping continuous wavelet transform to analog filter implementation with low-power consumption and high approximation accuracy, this paper proposes a novel approximation method to construct the wavelet base in analog domain, in which the approximation process in frequency domain is considered as an optimization problem by building a mathematical model with only one term in the numerator. The hybrid genetic algorithm consisting of genetic algorithm and quasi-Newton method is employed to find the globally optimum solution, taking required stability into account. Experiment results show that the proposed method can give a stable analog wavelet base with simple structure and higher approximation accuracy compared with existing method, leading to a better spike detection accuracy. The fourth-order Marr wavelet filter is designed as an example using Gm-C filter structure based on LC ladder simulation, whose power consumption is only 33.4 pW at 2.1Hz. Simulation results show that the design method can be used to facilitate low power and small volume implementation of on-line epileptic event detector.Peer reviewe

A VHDL-AMS Simulation Environment for an UWB Impulse Radio Transceiver

Ultra-Wide-Band (UWB) communication based on the impulse radio paradigm is becoming increasingly popular. According to the IEEE 802.15 WPAN Low Rate Alternative PHY Task Group 4a, UWB will play a major role in localization applications, due to the high time resolution of UWB signals which allow accurate indirect measurements of distance between transceivers. Key for the successful implementation of UWB transceivers is the level of integration that will be reached, for which a simulation environment that helps take appropriate design decisions is crucial. Owing to this motivation, in this paper we propose a multiresolution UWB simulation environment based on the VHDL-AMS hardware description language, along with a proper methodology which helps tackle the complexity of designing a mixed-signal UWB System-on-Chip. We applied the methodology and used the simulation environment for the specification and design of an UWB transceiver based on the energy detection principle. As a by-product, simulation results show the effectiveness of UWB in the so-called ranging application, that is the accurate evaluation of the distance between a couple of transceivers using the two-way-ranging metho

System Identification, Diagnosis, and Built-In Self-Test of High Switching Frequency DC-DC Converters

abstract: Complex electronic systems include multiple power domains and drastically varying dynamic power consumption patterns, requiring the use of multiple power conversion and regulation units. High frequency switching converters have been gaining prominence in the DC-DC converter market due to smaller solution size (higher power density) and higher efficiency. As the filter components become smaller in value and size, they are unfortunately also subject to higher process variations and worse degradation profiles jeopardizing stable operation of the power supply. This dissertation presents techniques to track changes in the dynamic loop characteristics of the DC-DC converters without disturbing the normal mode of operation. A digital pseudo-noise (PN) based stimulus is used to excite the DC-DC system at various circuit nodes to calculate the corresponding closed-loop impulse response. The test signal energy is spread over a wide bandwidth and the signal analysis is achieved by correlating the PN input sequence with the disturbed output generated, thereby accumulating the desired behavior over time. A mixed-signal cross-correlation circuit is used to derive on-chip impulse responses, with smaller memory and lower computational requirement in comparison to a digital correlator approach. Model reference based parametric and non-parametric techniques are discussed to analyze the impulse response results in both time and frequency domain. The proposed techniques can extract open-loop phase margin and closed-loop unity-gain frequency within 5.2% and 4.1% error, respectively, for the load current range of 30-200mA. Converter parameters such as natural frequency (ω_n ), quality factor (Q), and center frequency (ω_c ) can be estimated within 3.6%, 4.7%, and 3.8% error respectively, over load inductance of 4.7-10.3µH, and filter capacitance of 200-400nF. A 5-MHz switching frequency, 5-8.125V input voltage range, voltage-mode controlled DC-DC buck converter is designed for the proposed built-in self-test (BIST) analysis. The converter output voltage range is 3.3-5V and the supported maximum load current is 450mA. The peak efficiency of the converter is 87.93%. The proposed converter is fabricated on a 0.6µm 6-layer-metal Silicon-On-Insulator (SOI) technology with a die area of 9mm^2 . The area impact due to the system identification blocks including related I/O structures is 3.8% and they consume 530µA quiescent current during operation.Dissertation/ThesisDoctoral Dissertation Electrical Engineering 201

Analog sinewave signal generators for mixed-signal built-in test applications

This work presents a technique for the generation of analog sinusoidal signals with high spectral quality and reduced circuitry resources. Two integrated demonstrators are presented to show the feasibility of the approach. The proposed generation technique is based on a modified analog filter that provides a sinusoidal output as the response to a DC input. It has the attributes of digital programming and control, low area overhead, and low design effort, which make this approach very suitable as test stimulus generator for built-in test applications. The demonstrators—a continuous-time generator and a discrete-time one—have been integrated in a standard 0.35 μm CMOS technology. Simulation results and experimental measurements in the lab are provided, and the obtained performance is compared to current state-of-the-art on-chip generation strategies.Gobierno de España TEC2007-68072/MIC, TSI-020400-2008-71/MEDEA+2A105, CATRENE CT302Junta de Andalucía P09-TIC-538

Equalization of Third-Order Intermodulation Products in Wideband Direct Conversion Receivers

This paper reports a SAW-less direct-conversion receiver which utilizes a mixed-signal feedforward path to regenerate and adaptively cancel IM3 products, thus accomplishing system-level linearization. The receiver system performance is dominated by a custom integrated RF front end implemented in 130-nm CMOS and achieves an uncorrected out-of-band IIP3 of -7.1 dBm under the worst-case UMTS FDD Region 1 blocking specifications. Under IM3 equalization, the receiver achieves an effective IIP3 of +5.3 dBm and meets the UMTS BER sensitivity requirement with 3.7 dB of margin

Spectral Signature Analysis – BIST for RF Front-Ends

In this paper, the Spectral Signature Analysis is presented as a concept for an integrable self-test system (Built-In Self-Test – BIST) for RF front-ends is presented. It is based on modelling the whole RF front-end (transmitter and receiver) on system level, on generating of a Spectral Signature and of evaluating of the Signature Response. Because of using multi-carrier signal as the test signature, the concept is especially useful for tests of linearity and frequency response of front-ends. Due to the presented method of signature response evaluation, this concept can be used for Built-In Self-Correction (BISC) at critical building blocks

Mass flow meter using the triboelectric effect for measurement in cryogenics

The use of triboelectric charge to measure the mass flow rate of cryogens for the Space Shuttle Main Engine was investigated. Cross correlation of the triboelectric charge signals was used to determine the transit time of the cryogen between two sensor locations in a .75-in tube. The ring electrode sensors were mounted in a removable spool piece. Three spool pieces were constructed for delivery, each with a different design. One set of electronics for implementation of the cross correlation and flow calculation was constructed for delivery. Tests were made using a laboratory flow loop using liquid freon and transformer oil. The measured flow precision was 1 percent and the response was linear. The natural frequency distribution of the triboelectric signal was approximately 1/f. The sensor electrodes should have an axial length less than approximately one/tenth pipe diameter. The electrode spacing should be less than approximately one pipe diameter. Tests using liquid nitrogen demonstrated poor tribo-signal to noise ratio. Most of the noise was microphonic and common to both electrode systems. The common noise rejection facility of the correlator was successful in compensating for this noise but the signal was too small to enable reliable demonstration of the technique in liquid nitrogen