Coded Index Modulation for Non-DC-Biased OFDM in Multiple LED Visible Light Communication

Use of multiple light emitting diodes (LED) is an attractive way to increase spectral efficiency in visible light communications (VLC). A non-DC-biased OFDM (NDC OFDM) scheme that uses two LEDs has been proposed in the literature recently. NDC OFDM has been shown to perform better than other OFDM schemes for VLC like DC-biased OFDM (DCO OFDM) and asymmetrically clipped OFDM (ACO OFDM) in multiple LEDs settings. In this paper, we propose an efficient multiple LED OFDM scheme for VLC which uses {\em coded index modulation}. The proposed scheme uses two transmitter blocks, each having a pair of LEDs. Within each block, NDC OFDM signaling is done. The selection of which block is activated in a signaling interval is decided by information bits (i.e., index bits). In order to improve the reliability of the index bits at the receiver (which is critical because of high channel correlation in multiple LEDs settings), we propose to use coding on the index bits alone. We call the proposed scheme as CI-NDC OFDM (coded index NDC OFDM) scheme. Simulation results show that, for the same spectral efficiency, CI-NDC OFDM that uses LDPC coding on the index bits performs better than NDC OFDM

Generalized Spatial Modulation in Indoor Wireless Visible Light Communication

In this paper, we investigate the performance of generalized spatial modulation (GSM) in indoor wireless visible light communication (VLC) systems. GSM uses $N_t$ light emitting diodes (LED), but activates only $N_a$ of them at a given time. Spatial modulation and spatial multiplexing are special cases of GSM with $N_{a}=1$ and $N_{a}=N_t$, respectively. We first derive an analytical upper bound on the bit error rate (BER) for maximum likelihood (ML) detection of GSM in VLC systems. Analysis and simulation results show that the derived upper bound is very tight at medium to high signal-to-noise ratios (SNR). The channel gains and channel correlations influence the GSM performance such that the best BER is achieved at an optimum LED spacing. Also, for a fixed transmission efficiency, the performance of GSM in VLC improves as the half-power semi-angle of the LEDs is decreased. We then compare the performance of GSM in VLC systems with those of other MIMO schemes such as spatial multiplexing (SMP), space shift keying (SSK), generalized space shift keying (GSSK), and spatial modulation (SM). Analysis and simulation results show that GSM in VLC outperforms the other considered MIMO schemes at moderate to high SNRs; for example, for 8 bits per channel use, GSM outperforms SMP and GSSK by about 21 dB, and SM by about 10 dB at $10^{-4}$ BER

Equipartition of Current in Parallel Conductors on Cooling Through the Superconducting Transition

Our experiments show that for two or more pieces of a wire, of different lengths in general, combined in parallel and connected to a dc source, the current ratio evolves towards unity as the combination is cooled to the superconducting transition temperature Tc, and remains pinned at that value below it. This re-distribution of the total current towards equipartition without external fine tuning is a surprise. It can be physically understood in terms of a mechanism that involves the flux-flow resistance associated with the transport current in a wire of type-II superconducting material. It is the fact that the flux-flow resistance increases with current that drives the current division towards equipartition.Comment: Revised version of J.Phys. Condens.Matter; vol. 18(2006) L143-L147 14 pages including 3 figures; provided an explanation in terms of the physical mechanism of flux flow induced resistance that is proportional to the impressed current. We are adding a simple, physically robust derivation of our equipartition without taking resort to the minimum dissipation principl

Electrochemical behaviour of titanium supported spinel type anodes

Studies on the cobalt based spinel compounds coated titanium anodes (for example, cobalt-nickel and cobaltzinc systems) by galvanostatic polarisetion technique have been carried out under various experimental conditions. The influence of the incorporation of nickel or zinc as oxidea to cobalt spinel has also been studied and the rewh compared. In addition, data obtained from x-ray and SEM studii are presented

Probing local nonlinear viscoelastic properties in soft materials

Minimally invasive experimental methods that can measure local rate dependent mechanical properties are essential in understanding the behaviour of soft and biological materials in a wide range of applications. Needle based measurement techniques such as Cavitation Rheology and Volume Controlled Cavity Expansion (VCCE), allow for minimally invasive local mechanical testing, but have been limited to measuring the elastic material properties. Here, we propose several enhancements to the VCCE technique to adapt it for characterization of viscoelastic response at low to medium stretch rates ($10^{-2}$ - $1$ s${}^{-1}$). The proposed technique performs several cycles of expansion-relaxation at controlled stretch rates in a cavity expansion setting and then employs a large deformation viscoelastic model to capture the measured material response. Application of the technique to soft PDMS rubber reveals significant rate dependent material response with high precision and repeatability, while isolating equilibrated states that are used to directly infer the quasistatic elastic modulus. The technique is further established by demonstrating its ability to capture changes in the rate dependent material response of a tuneable PDMS system. The measured viscoelastic properties are used to explain earlier reports of rate insensitive material response by needle based methods: it is demonstrated that the conventional use of constant volumetric rate cavity expansion can induce high stretch rates that lead to viscoelastic stiffening and an illusion of rate insensitive material response. We thus conclude with a cautionary note on possible overestimation of the quasistatic elastic modulus in previous studies and suggest that the stretch rate controlled expansion protocol, proposed in this work, is essential for accurate estimation of both quasistatic and dynamic material parameters