Role of Laboratory Education in Power Engineering: Is the Virtual Laboratory Feasible? Part I

IEEE PES sponsors a panel session in the summer power meeting in Seattle on laboratory education in power engineering. Six short papers and one full paper summarize the opinions of the panelist. This paper contains the summary of four of the presentations. The objective of the panel is to discuss the role of laboratory education in power engineering at both the graduate and undergraduate level. The question is what type of laboratory course is needed? Power electronics, electric machines, system simulation, etc? the second objective is to assess the status and value of computer based virtual laboratories. This includes the presentation of experience with virtual laboratories and a list of available tools. The teaching of power system operation can be improved using a simulation laboratory. The available simulation tools and the assessment of their values will be an important topic of the panel. The last presentation gives opposing views, arguing for the traditional laboratory us

Intranasal Delivery of Thermostable Subunit Vaccine for Cross-Reactive Mucosal and Systemic Antibody Responses Against SARS-CoV-2

Despite the remarkable efficacy of currently approved COVID-19 vaccines, there are several opportunities for continued vaccine development against SARS-CoV-2 and future lethal respiratory viruses. In particular, restricted vaccine access and hesitancy have limited immunization rates. In addition, current vaccines are unable to prevent breakthrough infections, leading to prolonged virus circulation. To improve access, a subunit vaccine with enhanced thermostability was designed to eliminate the need for an ultra-cold chain. The exclusion of infectious and genetic materials from this vaccine may also help reduce vaccine hesitancy. In an effort to prevent breakthrough infections, intranasal immunization to induce mucosal immunity was explored. A prototype vaccine comprised of receptor-binding domain (RBD) polypeptides formulated with additional immunoadjuvants in a chitosan (CS) solution induced high levels of RBD-specific antibodies in laboratory mice after 1 or 2 immunizations. Antibody responses were durable with high titers persisting for at least five months following subcutaneous vaccination. Serum anti-RBD antibodies contained both IgG1 and IgG2a isotypes suggesting that the vaccine induced a mixed Th1/Th2 response. RBD vaccination without CS formulation resulted in minimal anti-RBD responses. The addition of CpG oligonucleotides to the CS plus RBD vaccine formulation increased antibody titers more effectively than interleukin-12 (IL-12). Importantly, generated antibodies were cross-reactive against RBD mutants associated with SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern, including alpha, beta and delta variants, and inhibited binding of RBD to its cognate receptor angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). With respect to stability, vaccines did not lose activity when stored at either room temperature (21-22°C) or 4°C for at least one month. When delivered intranasally, vaccines induced RBD-specific mucosal IgA antibodies, which may protect against breakthrough infections in the upper respiratory tract. Altogether, data indicate that the designed vaccine platform is versatile, adaptable and capable of overcoming key constraints of current COVID-19 vaccines

Electron transport in quantum dot chains: Dimensionality effects and hopping conductance

Detailed experimental and theoretical studies of lateral electron transport in a system of quantum dot chains demonstrate the complicated character of the conductance within the chain structure due to the interaction of conduction channels with different dimensionalities. The one-dimensional character of states in the wetting layer results in an anisotropic mobility, while the presence of the zero-dimensional states of the quantum dots leads to enhanced hopping conductance, which affects the low-temperature mobility and demonstrates an anisotropy in the conductance. These phenomena were probed by considering a one-dimensional model of hopping along with band filling effects. Differences between the model and the experimental results indicate that this system does not obey the simple one-dimensional Mott\u27s law of hopping and deserves further experimental and theoretical considerations

A Review of Current Research Trends in Power-Electronic Innovations in Cyber-Physical Systems.

In this paper, a broad overview of the current research trends in power-electronic innovations in cyber-physical systems (CPSs) is presented. The recent advances in semiconductor device technologies, control architectures, and communication methodologies have enabled researchers to develop integrated smart CPSs that can cater to the emerging requirements of smart grids, renewable energy, electric vehicles, trains, ships, internet of things (IoTs), etc. The topics presented in this paper include novel power-distribution architectures, protection techniques considering large renewable integration in smart grids, wireless charging in electric vehicles, simultaneous power and information transmission, multi-hop network-based coordination, power technologies for renewable energy and smart transformer, CPS reliability, transactive smart railway grid, and real-time simulation of shipboard power systems. It is anticipated that the research trends presented in this paper will provide a timely and useful overview to the power-electronics researchers with broad applications in CPSs.post-print2.019 K

Simulation of SRAM SEU Sensitivity at Reduced Operating Temperatures

A new NanoTCAD-to-Spectre interface is applied to perform mixed-mode SEU simulations of an SRAM cell. Results using newly calibrated TCAD cold temperature substrate mobility models, and BSIM3 compact models extracted explicitly for the cold temperature designs, indicate a 33% reduction in SEU threshold for the range of temperatures simulated

Polarizabilities of Adsorbed and Assembled Molecules: Measuring the Conductance through Buried Contacts

We have measured the polarizabilities of four families of molecules adsorbed to Au{111} surfaces, with structures ranging from fully saturated to fully conjugated, including single-molecule switches. Measured polarizabilities increase with increasing length and conjugation in the adsorbed molecules and are consistent with theoretical calculations. For single-molecule switches, the polarizability reflects the difference in substrate-molecule electronic coupling in the ON and OFF conductance states. Calculations suggest that the switch between the two conductance states is correlated with an oxidation state change in a nitro functional group in the switch molecules

Electrons, Photons, and Force: Quantitative Single-Molecule Measurements from Physics to Biology

Single-molecule measurement techniques have illuminated unprecedented details of chemical behavior, including observations of the motion of a single molecule on a surface, and even the vibration of a single bond within a molecule. Such measurements are critical to our understanding of entities ranging from single atoms to the most complex protein assemblies. We provide an overview of the strikingly diverse classes of measurements that can be used to quantify single-molecule properties, including those of single macromolecules and single molecular assemblies, and discuss the quantitative insights they provide. Examples are drawn from across the single-molecule literature, ranging from ultrahigh vacuum scanning tunneling microscopy studies of adsorbate diffusion on surfaces to fluorescence studies of protein conformational changes in solution

Integrated motor drives: state of the art and future trends

With increased need for high power density, high efficiency and high temperature capabilities in Aerospace and Automotive applications, Integrated Motor Drives (IMD) offers a potential solution. However, close physical integration of the converter and the machine may also lead to an increase in components temperature. This requires careful mechanical, structural and thermal analysis; and design of the IMD system. This paper reviews existing IMD technologies and their thermal effects on the IMD system. The effects of the power electronics (PE) position on the IMD system and its respective thermal management concepts are also investigated. The challenges faced in designing and manufacturing of an IMD along with the mechanical and structural impacts of close physical integration is also discussed and potential solutions are provided. Potential converter topologies for an IMD like the Matrix converter, 2-level Bridge, 3-level NPC and Multiphase full bridge converters are also reviewed. Wide band gap devices like SiC and GaN and their packaging in power modules for IMDs are also discussed. Power modules components and packaging technologies are also presented