Analysis of Stop-and-Wait ARQ for a wireless channel

In this paper, we study the behavior of the transmitter buffer of a system working under a Stop-and-Wait retransmission protocol. The buffer at the transmitter side is modeled as a discrete-time infinite-capacity queue. The numbers of information packets entering the buffer during consecutive slots are assumed to be independent and identically distributed random variables. The packets are sent over an unreliable channel and transmission errors occur in a correlated manner. Specifically, the probability of an erroneous transmission is modulated by a two-state Markov chain. An expression is derived for the probability generating function of the buffer content. This expression is then used to derive several queue-length characteristics and the mean packet delay. Numerical examples illustrate the strong effect of error correlation on the system performance. The obtained analytical results are also compared with appropriate simulations.      

Incorporation of amphiphilic ruthenium(II) ammine complexes into Langmuir-Blodgett thin films with switchable quadratic nonlinear optical behavior

Nine nonlinear optical (NLO) chromophores with pyridinium electron acceptors have been synthesized by complexing new proligands with {Ru(II)(NH(3))(5)}(2+) electron-donor centers. The presence of long alkyl/fluoroalkyl chain substituents imparts amphiphilic properties, and these cationic complexes have been characterized as their PF(6)(-) salts by using various techniques including electronic absorption spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. Each complex shows three reversible/quasireversible redox processes; a Ru(III/II) oxidation and two ligand-based reductions. The energies of the intense visible d → π* metal-to-ligand charge-transfer (MLCT) absorptions correlate to some extent with the ligand reduction potentials. (1)H NMR spectroscopy also provides insights into the relative electron-withdrawing strengths of the new ligands. Single crystal X-ray structures have been determined for two of the proligand salts and one complex salt, [Ru(II)(NH(3))(5)(4-C(16)H(33)PhQ(+))]Cl(3)·3.25H(2)O (PhQ(+) = N-phenyl-4,4'-bipyridinium), showing centrosymmetric packing structures in each case. The PF(6)(-) analogue of the latter complex has been used to deposit reproducibly high-quality, multilayered Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) thin films. These films show a strong second harmonic generation (SHG) response from a 1064 nm laser; their MLCT absorbance increases linearly with the number of layers (N) and I(2ω)/I(ω)(2) (I(2ω) = intensity at 532 nm; I(ω) = intensity at 1064 nm) scales quadratically with N, consistent with homogeneous deposition. LB films on indium tin oxide (ITO)-coated glass show electrochemically induced switching of the SHG response, with a decrease in activity of about 50% on Ru(II) → Ru(III) oxidation. This effect is reversible, but reproducible over only a few cycles before the signal from the Ru(II) species diminishes. This work extrapolates our original solution studies (Coe, B. J. et al. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed.1999, 38, 366) to the first demonstration of redox-switching of NLO activity in a molecular material.     

Continuous Synthesis of Peralkylated Imidazoles and their Transformation into Ionic Liquids with Improved (Electro)Chemical Stabilities

A versatile and efficient method to synthesize tetrasubstituted imidazoles via a one‐pot modified Debus–Radziszewski reaction and their subsequent transformation into the corresponding imidazolium ionic liquids is reported. The tetrasubstituted imidazoles were also synthesized by means of a continuous flow process. This straightforward synthetic procedure allows for a fast and selective synthesis of tetrasubstituted imidazoles on a large scale. The completely substituted imidazolium dicyanamide and bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide salts were obtained via a metathesis reaction of the imidazolium iodide salts. The melting points and viscosities are of the same order of magnitude as for their non‐substituted analogues. In addition to the superior chemical stability of these novel ionic liquids, which allows them to be applied in strong alkaline media, the improved thermal and electrochemical stabilities of these compounds compared with conventional imidazolium ionic liquids is also demonstrated by thermogravimetrical analysis (TGA) and cyclic voltammetry (CV). Although increased substitution of the ionic liquids does not further increase thermal stability, a definite increase in cathodic stability is observable.     

Synthesis of functionalized furopyrazines as restricted dipeptidomimetics

Herein, an efficient synthetic approach to a furopyrazine scaffold with four points of diversity, starting from 2(1H)-pyrazinones, with dipeptomimetic properties, is presented. R-groups corresponding to amino acid side chains were introduced during the 2(1H)-pyrazinone and subsequent furopyrazine formation. The furopyrazine scaffold was further functionalized with an amino- and a carboxy-terminus resulting in a conformationally restricted dipeptidomimetic scaffold. The carboxy-terminus was introduced via a chemoselective vinylation of the 7-position followed by oxidative cleavage, while the amino-terminus was obtained via Buchwald–Hartwig amidation of the 2-position of the scaffold. The versatility of the synthetic method was demonstrated by the synthesis of a small library of diversely substituted furopyrazines having various amino acid side chains on the four points of diversity. Evaluation with an X-ray structure of the scaffold and computational analysis supports the exploitation of the furopyrazine scaffold as a restricted dipeptide mimic, which can mimic the two central residues of a β-turn.     

Study of the deformation characteristics of window security film by digital image correlation techniques

This paper presents a speckle-displacement measurement technique based on the digital image correlation to study the notch sensitivity and crack bridging of window security film. It is used to protect existing glazing against hurricanes, blast and terrorist explosions. The window security film is laminated to the interior side of the glass window by means of a special adhesive. When the glass is breaking, the window film keeps all glass fragments together.The proposed sub-pixel registration of the displacement field is achieved using a calculation technique based on the centre of mass localization of the complex spectrum. This approach increases the computational efficiency for displacements smaller than one pixel and performs with high precision when optimal values of the input correlation parameters are used. In order to achieve a high accuracy of the algorithm, optimization of these input image correlation parameters is offered. For larger displacements an iterative procedure which preserves the precision is successfully implemented.The speckle pattern is created by small white dots sprayed on the previously black painted film surface. As a result, white light illumination can be used which significantly simplifies the experiments.     

Cationic Geminoid Peptide Amphiphiles Inhibit DENV2 Protease,Furin, and Viral Replication

Dengue is an important arboviral infectious disease for which there is currently no specific cure. We report gemini-like (geminoid) alkylated amphiphilic peptides containing lysines in combination with glycines or alanines (C₁₅H₃₁C(O)-Lys-(Gly or Ala)_nLys-NHC₁₆H₃₃, shorthand notation C₁₆-KX_nK-C₁₆ with X = A or G, and n = 0–2). The representatives with 1 or 2 Ala inhibit dengue protease and human furin, two serine proteases involved in dengue virus infection that have peptides with cationic amino acids as their preferred substrates, with IC₅₀ values in the lower µM range. The geminoid C₁₆-KAK-C₁₆ combined inhibition of DENV2 protease (IC₅₀ 2.3 µM) with efficacy against replication of wildtype DENV2 in LLC-MK2 cells (EC₅₀ 4.1 µM) and an absence of toxicity. We conclude that the lysine-based geminoids have activity against dengue virus infection, which is based on their inhibition of the proteases involved in viral replication and are therefore promising leads to further developing antiviral therapeutics, not limited to dengue.     

A new approach for quantitative risk analysis

Project risk management aims to provide insight into the risk profile of a project as to facilitate decision makers to mitigate the impact of risks on project objectives such as budget and time. A popular approach to determine where to focus mitigation efforts, is the use of so-called ranking indices (e.g., the criticality index, the significance index etc.). Ranking indices allow the ranking of project activities (or risks) based on the impact they have on project objectives. A distinction needs to be made between activity-based ranking indices (those that rank activities) and risk-driven ranking indices (those that rank risks). Because different ranking indices result in different rankings of activities and risks, one might wonder which ranking index is best. In this article, we provide an answer to this question. Our contribution is threefold: (1) we set up a large computational experiment to assess the efficiency of ranking indices in the mitigation of risks, (2) we develop two new ranking indices that outperform existing ranking indices and (3) we show that a risk-driven approach is more effective than an activity-based approach.     

Determination of geometrical factors in Layerwise Laser Melting using optical process monitoring

Layerwise Laser Melting (LLM) is a layerwise production technique enabling the production of complex metallic parts. In the process a thin layer of powder is first deposited on a base plate. With the energy of a scanning laser beam this layer is melted at selected places, according to a predefined scanning pattern. After scanning, a new layer of powder is deposited on top of the previous layer and selectively melted. This sequence of depositing and scanning is repeated until the complete part is built. The local geometry surrounding the melt pool has a large influence on the processing behavior. For process control issues, this influence must be known and quantified, in order to determine a priori optimal processing conditions and to interpret measured melt pool radiation. In order to study the melt pool behavior, optical process monitoring of LLM has been applied using a high speed near-infrared CMOS camera and a large area silicon photodiode sensor. Data processing rates up to 10 kHz and real-time process monitoring are achieved using image and signal processing on a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). Several case studies will be presented showing that the geometric influencing factors can be studied and quantified by analyzing the melt pool sensor output.