Multi-band phase shifter design using modified slotline configuration

In this paper, an analog multiband phase shifter using slotline configuration is proposed. To implement the design, a pair of modified Split Ring Resonator (SRR) is employed. The periodic property of SRR provides multiband characteristics, whether the coupling slot gives the phase variations over the bands. The operation is well explained with an equivalent circuit model and its characteristics have been studied both in simulation and measurement. The prototype operates in 1.77–2.16, 3.5–3.97, 5.08–5.33, 6.43–6.93, and 8.01–8.59 GHz frequency bands which can be utilized for GSM, GPS, WLAN, C-band, and X-band applications, respectively.     

Interplay between bulk viscoelasticity and surface energy in autohesive tack of rubber‐tackifier blends

The effects of change in surface energy and bulk viscoelastic properties on the autohesive tack strength of brominated isobutylene‐co‐p‐methylstyrene (BIMS) rubber have been investigated by the addition of hydrocarbon resin (HCR) tackifier and maleated hydrocarbon resin (MA‐g‐HCR) tackifier. The addition of compatible HCR tackifier results in a reasonable increment in the tack strength of BIMS rubber by modifying only the bulk viscoelastic properties (compliance, entanglement molecular weight, relaxation time, self‐diffusion, and monomer friction coefficient values) of BIMS rubber to perform better during the course of bonding and debonding steps of the peel test. Incorporation of MA‐g‐HCR tackifier (containing 5–20 wt % of grafted maleic anhydride) steadily increases the tack strength of BIMS rubber further by precisely modifying both the surface energy and bulk viscoelastic properties to perform much better in the bonding and debonding steps. However, beyond 20 wt % of grafted maleic anhydride in the HCR tackifier, the tack strength starts decreasing due to the incompatibility between the blend components, and hence, the bulk viscoelastic properties required for bond formation are severely retarded by the interrelated reinforcing effect and the phase separation effect of the brittle MA‐g‐HCR tackifier in the BIMS rubber. Hence, the polar groups in a tackifier will contribute to significant enhancement of autohesive tack strength only if the bulk viscoelastic property of the rubber‐tackifier blend is favorable for bond formation and bond separation. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 48: 972–982, 2010     

Studies on evaporated titanium oxide thin films for oxygen gas detection

Present work deals with the preparation of TiO₂ thin films of different thicknesses by PVD technique using an electron beam and to characterize the films for oxygen gas detection. The films were characterized using optical transmission measurements, XRD and atomic force microscopy. From the spectral data, the extinction, absorption coefficient and refractive index of the films are evaluated and reported. The optical band gap energy varies between 3 and 3.68 eV. The XRD pattern confirms the formation of polycrystalline anatase structure of Titanium with preferred orientation of (110) plane. The AFM images indicate the presence of coarse and fine grains with uniform as well as smooth surfaces over the entire range of the analyzed surface. Response characteristics of TiO₂ thin films for oxygen gas detection are studied, which indicate a low response time of 120 seconds and high sensitivity of 16 at the operating temperature 450 °C. Paper presented at the 2nd International Conference on Ionic Devices, Anna University, Chennai, India, Nov. 28–30, 2003.     

On Using Tabu Search for Design Automation of VLSI Systems

Tabu search is a meta-heuristic problem solving technique that, when applied carefully, provides near optimal solutions in a very short time. In this paper, we have described the use of tabu search for solving problems related to very large scale integrated (VLSI) circuit design automation. Specifically, we have demonstrated the use for VLSI circuit partitioning and placement. We present a tabu search based circuit bi-partitioning technique that partitions circuits with the goal of minimizing the size of the cutset between the partitions. Then, we use tabu search techniques along with force directed placement techniques to accomplish the physical placement of VLSI circuits on regular two-dimensional arrays with the goal of minimizing the placement time. We use empirical data from partitioning and placement of benchmark circuits to test our techniques. Our methods show improvement when compared to partitioning techniques from the literature and commercially available placement tools. Relative to the literature, our tabu search bi-partitioning technique improves on the best known minimum cuts for several benchmark circuits. Relative to commercially available computer aided design tools, our tabu search based placement approach shows dramatic (20×) speedup in execution time without negative impact on the quality of the solution.     

Nanoparticles and the Environment

Journal of Nanoparticle Research -     

Regioselective Acceptorless Dehydrogenative Coupling of N‐Heterocycles toward Functionalized Quinolines,Phenanthrolines, and Indoles

A new strategy has been developed for the oxidant‐ and base‐free dehydrogenative coupling of N‐heterocycles at mild conditions. Under the action of an iridium catalyst, N‐heterocycles undergo multiple sp³ C? H activation steps, generating a nucleophilic enamine that reacts in situ with various electrophiles to give highly functionalized products. The dehydrogenative coupling can be cascaded with Friedel–Crafts addition, resulting in a double functionalization of the N‐heterocycles.     

A Multifunctional Subphthalocyanine Nanosphere for Targeting,Labeling, and Killing of Antibiotic‐Resistant Bacteria

Developing a material that can combat antibiotic‐resistant bacteria, a major global health threat, is an urgent requirement. To tackle this challenge, we synthesized a multifunctional subphthalocyanine (SubPc) polymer nanosphere that has the ability to target, label, and photoinactivate antibiotic‐resistant bacteria in a single treatment with more than 99 % efficiency, even with a dose as low as 4.2 J cm⁻² and a loading concentration of 10 nM . The positively charged nanosphere shell composed of covalently linked SubPc units can increase the local concentration of photosensitizers at therapeutic sites. The nanosphere shows superior performance compared to corresponding monomers presumably because of their enhanced water dispersibility, higher efficiency of singlet‐oxygen generation, and phototoxicity. In addition, this material is useful in fluorescence labeling of living cells and shows promise in photoacoustic imaging of bacteria in vivo.     

Design,synthesis, and antibacterial studies of potent pyrazolinyltriazoles

Research on Chemical Intermediates - A library of pyrazolinyltriazole hybrids (3a–l, 4a–l) was synthesized via azide–alkyne dipolar (Huisgen) cycloaddition of azidoacetyl...     

Large Time Asymptotics with Error Estimates to Solutions of a Forced Burgers Equation

This article deals with a forced Burgers equation (FBE) subject to the initial function, which is continuous and summable on . Large time asymptotic behavior of solutions to the FBE is determined with precise error estimates. To achieve this, we construct solutions for the FBE with a different initial class of functions using the method of separation of variables and Cole–Hopf like transformation. These solutions are constructed in terms of Hermite polynomials with the help of similarity variables. The constructed solutions would help us to pick up an asymptotic approximation and to show that the magnitude of the difference function of the true and approximate solutions decays algebraically to 0 for large time.