Behavior of faulty double BJT BiCMOS logic gates

Logic Behavior of a Double BJT BiCMOS device under transistor level shorts and opens is examined. In addition to delay faults, faults that cause the gate to exhibit sequential behavior were observed. Several faults can be detected only by monitoring the current. The faulty behavior of Bipolar (TTL) and CMOS logic families is compared with BiCMOS, to bring out the testability differences

Belle II Technical Design Report

The Belle detector at the KEKB electron-positron collider has collected almost 1 billion Y(4S) events in its decade of operation. Super-KEKB, an upgrade of KEKB is under construction, to increase the luminosity by two orders of magnitude during a three-year shutdown, with an ultimate goal of 8E35 /cm^2 /s luminosity. To exploit the increased luminosity, an upgrade of the Belle detector has been proposed. A new international collaboration Belle-II, is being formed. The Technical Design Report presents physics motivation, basic methods of the accelerator upgrade, as well as key improvements of the detector.Comment: Edited by: Z. Dole\v{z}al and S. Un

A high speed Tri-Vision system for automotive applications

Purpose: Cameras are excellent ways of non-invasively monitoring the interior and exterior of vehicles. In particular, high speed stereovision and multivision systems are important for transport applications such as driver eye tracking or collision avoidance. This paper addresses the synchronisation problem which arises when multivision camera systems are used to capture the high speed motion common in such applications. Methods: An experimental, high-speed tri-vision camera system intended for real-time driver eye-blink and saccade measurement was designed, developed, implemented and tested using prototype, ultra-high dynamic range, automotive-grade image sensors specifically developed by E2V (formerly Atmel) Grenoble SA as part of the European FP6 project – sensation (advanced sensor development for attention stress, vigilance and sleep/wakefulness monitoring). Results : The developed system can sustain frame rates of 59.8 Hz at the full stereovision resolution of 1280 × 480 but this can reach 750 Hz when a 10 k pixel Region of Interest (ROI) is used, with a maximum global shutter speed of 1/48000 s and a shutter efficiency of 99.7%. The data can be reliably transmitted uncompressed over standard copper Camera-Link® cables over 5 metres. The synchronisation error between the left and right stereo images is less than 100 ps and this has been verified both electrically and optically. Synchronisation is automatically established at boot-up and maintained during resolution changes. A third camera in the set can be configured independently. The dynamic range of the 10bit sensors exceeds 123 dB with a spectral sensitivity extending well into the infra-red range. Conclusion: The system was subjected to a comprehensive testing protocol, which confirms that the salient requirements for the driver monitoring application are adequately met and in some respects, exceeded. The synchronisation technique presented may also benefit several other automotive stereovision applications including near and far-field obstacle detection and collision avoidance, road condition monitoring and others.Partially funded by the EU FP6 through the IST-507231 SENSATION project.peer-reviewe

Providing Sharia-Compliant Consumer Protection in Online Contracts: A Case Study of Saudi Arabia

The emergence of modern technology and online selling in the early 1990s led to a significant shift in business practices, as sellers and buyers no longer needed to follow the traditional contracting process. Indeed, the facilitation of online contracts, sales and purchases over the Internet, such as business-to-consumer contracts (B2C), is one of the most significant technological developments of the Internet age. Despite the benefits of online shopping and its increasing popularity among consumers in recent years, online retailing is not without its problems, and the negative consequences can be severe. Consumers are affected by several factors when they purchase a product or service online. In short, compared to offline shopping, greater risk and less trust are expected in an online environment. This has led some global organisations to address the need for supranational consumer protection and alleviate risks to online consumers worldwide. However, such initiatives may not have the desired impact on developing countries, as long as these guidelines are not adopted in their national legislation. The first objective of this study is to investigate the laws regulating online consumer protection in the KSA and to assess whether they have achieved their purposes. A secondary objective is to determine whether or not there is the need for further reform in the legislation of online consumer protection, and if such reform is indicated, how it might be achieved in a way that reflects the needs of a state in the modern world, yet remains consistent with Islamic law. To that aim, the thesis will consider adopting Sharia law's features and take the English consumer protection model as an inspiration to suit the Saudi legal environment to regulate online transactions. Therefore, the best practices and legal principles that come to light from this analysis will then be outlined to fulfil this research's main aim, identifying opportunities for the improvement of consumer protection in Saudi Arabia

Technology Development Roadmap: A Technology Development Roadmap for a Future Gravitational Wave Mission

Humankind will detect the first gravitational wave (GW) signals from the Universe in the current decade using ground-based detectors. But the richest trove of astrophysical information lies at lower frequencies in the spectrum only accessible from space. Signals are expected from merging massive black holes throughout cosmic history, from compact stellar remnants orbiting central galactic engines from thousands of close contact binary systems in the Milky Way, and possibly from exotic sources, some not yet imagined. These signals carry essential information not available from electromagnetic observations, and which can be extracted with extraordinary accuracy. For 20 years, NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and an international research community have put considerable effort into developing concepts and technologies for a GW mission. Both the 2000 and 2010 decadal surveys endorsed the science and mission concept of the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA). A partnership of the two agencies defined and analyzed the concept for a decade. The agencies partnered on LISA Pathfinder (LPF), and ESA-led technology demonstration mission, now preparing for a 2015 launch. Extensive technology development has been carried out on the ground. Currently, the evolved Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (eLISA) concept, a LISA-like concept with only two measurement arms, is competing for ESA's L2 opportunity. NASA's Astrophysics Division seeks to be a junior partner if eLISA is selected. If eLISA is not selected, then a LISA-like mission will be a strong contender in the 2020 decadal survey. This Technology Development Roadmap (TDR) builds on the LISA concept development, the LPF technology development, and the U.S. and European ground-based technology development. The eLISA architecture and the architecture of the Mid-sized Space-based Gravitational-wave Observatory (SGO Mid)-a competitive design with three measurement arms from the recent design study for a NASA-led mission after 2020-both use the same technologies. Further, NASA participation in an ESA-led mission would likely augment the eLISA architecture with a third arm to become the SGO Mid architecture. For these reasons, this TDR for a future GW mission applies to both designs and both programmatic paths forward. It is adaptable to the different timelines and roles for an ESA-led or a NASA-led mission, and it is adaptable to available resources. Based on a mature understanding of the interaction between technology and risk, the authors of this TDR have chosen a set of objectives that are more expansive than is usual. The objectives for this roadmap are: (1) reduce technical and development risks and costs; (2) understand and, where possible, relieve system requirements and consequences; (3) increase technical insight into critical technologies; and (4) validate the design at the subsystem level. The emphasis on these objectives, particularly the latter two, is driven by outstanding programmatic decisions, namely whether a future GW mission is ESA-led or NASA-led, and availability of resources. The relative emphasis is best understood in the context of prioritization

Wafer-scale integration of semiconductor memory.

This work is directed towards a study of full-slice or "wafer-scale integrated" - semiconductor memory. Previous approaches to full slice technology are studied and critically compared. It is shown that a fault-tolerant, fixed-interconnection approach offers many advantages; such a technique forms the basis of the experimental work. The disadvantages of the conventional technology are reviewed to illustrate the potential improvements in cost, packing density and reliability obtainable with wafer-scale integration (W.S.l). Iterative chip arrays are modelled by a pseudorandom fault distribution; algorithms to control the linking of adjacent good - chips into linear chains are proposed and investigated by computer simulation. It is demonstrated that long chains may be produced at practicable yield levels. The on-chip control circuitry and the external control electronics required to implement one particular algorithm are described in relation to a TTL simulation of an array of 4 X 4 integrated circuit chips. A layout of the on-chip control logic is shown to require (in 40 dynamic MOS circuitry) an area equivalent to ~250 shift register stages -a reasonable overhead on large memories. Structures are proposed to extend the fixed-interconnection, fault-tolerant concept to parallel/serial organised memory - covering RAM, ROM and Associative Memory applications requiring up to~ 2M bits of storage. Potential problem areas in implementing W.S.I are discussed and it is concluded that current technology is capable of manufacturing such devices. A detailed cost comparison of the conventional and W.S.I approaches to large serial memories illustrates the potential savings available with wafer-scale integration. The problem of gaining industrial acceptance for W.S.I is discussed in relation to known and anticipated views- of new technology. The thesis concludes with suggestions for further work in the general field of wafer-scale integration

The Fifth NASA Symposium on VLSI Design

The fifth annual NASA Symposium on VLSI Design had 13 sessions including Radiation Effects, Architectures, Mixed Signal, Design Techniques, Fault Testing, Synthesis, Signal Processing, and other Featured Presentations. The symposium provides insights into developments in VLSI and digital systems which can be used to increase data systems performance. The presentations share insights into next generation advances that will serve as a basis for future VLSI design