A two-way regularization method for MEG source reconstruction

The MEG inverse problem refers to the reconstruction of the neural activity of the brain from magnetoencephalography (MEG) measurements. We propose a two-way regularization (TWR) method to solve the MEG inverse problem under the assumptions that only a small number of locations in space are responsible for the measured signals (focality), and each source time course is smooth in time (smoothness). The focality and smoothness of the reconstructed signals are ensured respectively by imposing a sparsity-inducing penalty and a roughness penalty in the data fitting criterion. A two-stage algorithm is developed for fast computation, where a raw estimate of the source time course is obtained in the first stage and then refined in the second stage by the two-way regularization. The proposed method is shown to be effective on both synthetic and real-world examples.Comment: Published in at http://dx.doi.org/10.1214/11-AOAS531 the Annals of Applied Statistics (http://www.imstat.org/aoas/) by the Institute of Mathematical Statistics (http://www.imstat.org

Multilayer microwave structures using thick-film technology.

Multilayer techniques, in conjunction with thick-film technology have been applied to the design and fabrication of several multilayer microwave structures to achieve the low cost and high performance goals set by modern microwave circuits and systems. To provide accurate material parameters for the design of multilayer thick-film components, a novel slit cavity resonator method has been developed that enables the relative permittivity and loss tangent of dielectric samples to be measured easily, and with high accuracy. A particular feature of this method is that it can be used to measure thick-film samples that are normally only available in relatively thin layers in a two-layer format. Rigorous electromagnetic analysis on a slit cavity has been performed that accounts for the effect of the fringing fields and the radiation from the slits. The method has been verified through measurement on several thick-film materials over X-band. Both the analytical methods and the fabrication techniques for multilayer microwave microstrip structures are presented. Several multilayer thick-film microstrip line test structures have been designed and characterised, and these provide a basic database for the design of multilayer microstrip components. A new design procedure for the multilayer end-coupled filter has been developed that enables the designer to arrive at the physical dimensions of the multilayer structure based on the filter specification. This design technique is effective as it combines the accuracy of electromagnetic (EM) analysis and the efficiency of circuit simulation. The multilayer gap, which is the most critical element of multilayer end-coupled filters, has been characterised using EM analysis and the data is incorporated into a circuit simulator. Measured and simulated results are presented that verify the new design technique. A 40% bandwidth has been achieved experimentally, which shows a very significant improvement over conventional single layer structures, where the bandwidth achievable is normally less than 5%. Novel, octave band DC blocks have been designed, fabricated and tested using a new multilayer format. The tight coupling required between the coupled lines in this component was realized by overlapping these lines in a multilayer structure. Very good agreement was obtained between measured and simulated data. The multilayer approach was also applied to the design of coupled line bandpass filters where a measured 80% bandwidth was achieved. For the first time, the properties of multilayer coupled lines using a range of different thick-film dielectrics are examined using their coupled-mode parameters. Design curves for multilayer coupled lines are obtained, that provide important information on the design of multilayer directional couplers. A practical design strategy for multilayer directional couplers is developed, which overcomes the problem of excessive computation that is normally associated with the electromagnetic optimization of multilayer circuit designs. The methodology has been verified through the design and measurement of wide bandwidth 2dB and 3dB directional couplers that were fabricated using multilayer, thick-film technology. New techniques for the design and fabrication of multilayer microwave thick-film components have thus been established, both theoretically and through practical circuit fabrication and measurement

A reconfigurable optical header recognition system for optical packet routing applications

We demonstrate a reconfigurable all-optical packet processing system. The key device is a code-reconfigurable header decoder based on a fiber Bragg grating. The performance of the system is tested for different packet headers, and error-free operation is confirmed

Analytical considerations of flow boiling heat transfer in metal-foam filled tubes

Flow boiling in metal-foam filled tube was analytically investigated based on a modified microstructure model, an original boiling heat transfer model and fin analysis for metal foams. Microstructure model of metal foams was established, by which fiber diameter and surface area density were precisely predicted. The heat transfer model for flow boiling in metal foams was based on annular pattern, in which two phase fluid was composed by vapor region in the center of the tube and liquid region near the wall. However, it was assumed that nucleate boiling performed only in the liquid region. Fin analysis and heat transfer network for metal foams were integrated to obtain the convective heat transfer coefficient at interface. The analytical solution was verified by its good agreement with experimental data. The parametric study on heat transfer coefficient and boiling mechanism was also carried out