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1. A Single Antenna Full-Duplex Radio Using a Non-Magnetic, CMOS Circulator with In-built Isolation Tuning

   Aravind Nagulu, Tingjun Chen ( January 2019 , IEEE ICC'19 Workshop on Full-Duplex Communications for Future Wireless Networks)

   Wireless systems which can simultaneously transmit and receive (STAR) are gaining significant academic and commercial interest due to their wide range of applications such as full-duplex (FD) wireless communication and FMCW radar. FD radios, where the transmitter (TX) and the receiver (RX) operate simultaneously at the same frequency, can potentially double the data rate at the physical layer and can provide many other advantages in the higher layers. The antenna interface of an FD radio is typically built using a multi-antenna system, or a single antenna through a bulky magnetic circulator or a lossy reciprocal hybrid. However, recent advances in CMOS-integrated circulators through spatio-temporal conductivity modulation have shown promise and potential to replace traditional bulky magnetic circulators. However, unlike magnetic circulators, CMOS-integrated non-magnetic circulators will introduce some nonlinear distortion and spurious tones arising from their clock circuitry. In this work, we present an FD radio using a highly linear CMOS integrable circulator, a frequency-flat RF canceler, and a USRP software-defined radio (SDR). At TX power level of +15 dBm, the implemented FD radio achieves a self-interference cancellation (SIC) of +55 dB from the circulator and RF canceler in the RF domain, and an overall SIC of +95 dB together with SIC in the digital domain. To analyze the non-linear phenomena of the CMOS circulator, we calculated the link level data-rate gain in an FD system with imperfect SIC and then extended this calculation to count the effect of TX-RX non-linearity of the circulator. In addition, we provide a qualitative discussion on the spurious tone responses of the circulator due to the clocking imperfections and non-linearity. Index Terms—Circulator, CMOS, conductivity modulation, full-duplex, non-reciprocity, self-interference cancellation. 

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2. Greedy Channel Selection for Dynamic Spectrum Access Radios

   https://doi.org/10.1109/ISCAS45731.2020.9180882  

   Lackpour, Alex ; Rey, Xaime Rivas ; Mainland, Geoffrey ; Dandekar, Kapil R. ( October 2020 , 2020 IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems)

   Dynamic Spectrum Access (DSA) radios typically select their radio channels according to their data networking goals, a defined DSA spectrum operating policy, and the state of the RF spectrum. RF spectrum sensing can be used to collect information about the state of the RF spectrum and prioritize which channels should be assigned for DSA radio waveform transmission and reception. This paper describes a Greedy Channel Ranking Algorithm (GCRA) used to calculate and rank RF interference metrics for observed DSA radio channels. The channel rankings can then be used to select and/or avoid channels in order to attain a desired DSA radio performance level. Experimental measurements are collected using our custom software-defined radio (SDR) system to quantify the performance of using GCRA for a DSA radio application. Analysis of these results show that both pre and post-detection average interference power metrics are the most accurate metrics for selecting groups of radio channels to solve constrained channel assignment problems in occupied gray space spectrum. 

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3. A Single Antenna Full-Duplex Radio using a Non-Magnetic, CMOS Circulator with In-Built Isolation Tuning

   https://doi.org/10.1109/ICCW.2019.8756839  

   Nagulu, Aravind ; Chen, Tingjun ; Zussman, Gil ; Krishnaswamy, Harish ( July 2019 , 2019 IEEE International Conference on Communications Workshops (ICC Workshops))

   Wireless systems which can simultaneously transmit and receive (STAR) are gaining significant academic and commercial interest due to their wide range of applications such as full-duplex (FD) wireless communication and FMCW radar. FD radios, where the transmitter (TX) and the receiver (RX) operate simultaneously at the same frequency, can potentially double the data rate at the physical layer and can provide many other advantages in the higher layers. The antenna interface of an FD radio is typically built using a multi-antenna system, or a single antenna through a bulky magnetic circulator or a lossy reciprocal hybrid. However, recent advances in CMOS-integrated circulators through spatio-temporal conductivity modulation have shown promise and potential to replace traditional bulky magnetic circulators. However, unlike magnetic circulators, CMOS-integrated non-magnetic circulators will introduce some nonlinear distortion and spurious tones arising from their clock circuitry. In this work, we present an FD radio using a highly linear CMOS integrable circulator, a frequency-flat RF canceler, and a USRP software-defined radio (SDR). At TX power level of +15 dBm, the implemented FD radio achieves a self-interference cancellation (SIC) of +55dB from the circulator and RF canceler in the RF domain, and an overall SIC of +95dB together with SIC in the digital domain. To analyze the non-linear phenomena of the CMOS circulator, we calculated the link level data-rate gain in an FD system with imperfect SIC and then extended this calculation to count the effect of TX-RX non-linearity of the circulator. In addition, we provide a qualitative discussion on the spurious tone responses of the circulator due to the clocking imperfections and non-linearity. 

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4. Photoemission characterization of N-polar III-nitride photocathodes as candidate bright electron beam sources for accelerator applications

   https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0076488  

   Cultrera, L. ; Rocco, E. ; Shahedipour-Sandvik, F. ; Bell, L. D. ; Bae, J. K. ; Bazarov, I. V. ; Saha, P. ; Karkare, S. ; Arjunan, A. ( March 2022 , Journal of Applied Physics)

   We report on the growth and characterization of a new class of photocathode structures for use as electron sources to produce high brightness electron beams for accelerator applications. The sources are realized using III-nitride materials and are designed to leverage the strong polarization field, which is characteristic of this class of materials when grown in their wurtzite crystal structure, to produce a negative electron affinity condition without the use of Cs, possibly allowing these materials to be operated in radio frequency guns. A Quantum Efficiency (QE) of about [Formula: see text] and an emitted electrons’ Mean Transverse Energy (MTE) of about 100 meV are measured at a wavelength of 265 nm. In a vacuum level of [Formula: see text] Torr, the QE does not decrease after more than 24 h of continuous operation. The lowest MTE of about 50 meV is measured at 300 nm along with a QE of [Formula: see text]. Surface characterizations reveal a possible contribution to the MTE from surface morphology, calling for more detailed studies.

    

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5. Work in Progress: Interactive Introductory Online Modules on Wireless Communications and Radio-frequency Spectrum Sharing

   Dietrich, C. B. ; Polys, N. F. ; Reid, K. ; García Sheridan, J. A. ; Emenonye, D. ; Gomez, X. ; Tolley, J. ; Makin, C. ; Gaeddert, J. ( July 2021 , ASEE Annual Conference proceedings)

   1. Description of the objectives and motivation for the contribution to ECE education The demand for wireless data transmission capacity is increasing rapidly and this growth is expected to continue due to ongoing prevalence of cellular phones and new and emerging bandwidth-intensive applications that encompass high-definition video, unmanned aerial systems (UAS), intelligent transportation systems (ITS) including autonomous vehicles, and others. Meanwhile, vital military and public safety applications also depend on access to the radio frequency spectrum. To meet these demands, the US federal government is beginning to move from the proven but inefficient model of exclusive frequency assignments to a more-efficient, shared-spectrum approach in some bands of the radio frequency spectrum. A STEM workforce that understands the radio frequency spectrum and applications that use the spectrum is needed to further increase spectrum efficiency and cost-effectiveness of wireless systems over the next several decades to meet anticipated and unanticipated increases in wireless data capacity. 2. Relevant background including literature search examples if appropriate CISCO Systems’ annual survey indicates continued strong growth in demand for wireless data capacity. Meanwhile, undergraduate electrical and computer engineering courses in communication systems, electromagnetics, and networks tend to emphasize mathematical and theoretical fundamentals and higher-layer protocols, with less focus on fundamental concepts that are more specific to radio frequency wireless systems, including the physical and media access control layers of wireless communication systems and networks. An efficient way is needed to introduce basic RF system and spectrum concepts to undergraduate engineering students in courses such as those mentioned above who are unable to, or had not planned to take a full course in radio frequency / microwave engineering or wireless systems and networks. We have developed a series of interactive online modules that introduce concepts fundamental to wireless communications, the radio frequency spectrum, and spectrum sharing, and seek to present these concepts in context. The modules include interactive, JavaScript-based simulation exercises intended to reinforce the concepts that are presented in the modules through narrated slide presentations, text, and external links. Additional modules in development will introduce advanced undergraduate and graduate students and STEM professionals to configuration and programming of adaptive frequency-agile radios and spectrum management systems that can operate efficiently in congested radio frequency environments. Simulation exercises developed for the advanced modules allow both manual and automatic control of simulated radio links in timed, game-like simulations, and some exercises will enable students to select from among multiple pre-coded controller strategies and optionally edit the code before running the timed simulation. Additionally, we have developed infrastructure for running remote laboratory experiments that can also be embedded within the online modules, including a web-based user interface, an experiment management framework, and software defined radio (SDR) application software that runs in a wireless testbed initially developed for research. Although these experiments rely on limited hardware resources and introduce additional logistical considerations, they provide additional realism that may further challenge and motivate students. 3. Description of any assessment methods used to evaluate the effectiveness of the contribution, Each set of modules is preceded and followed by a survey. Each individual module is preceded by a quiz and followed by another quiz, with pre- and post-quiz questions drawn from the same pool. The pre-surveys allow students to opt in or out of having their survey and quiz results used anonymously in research. 4. Statement of results. The initial modules have been and are being used by three groups of students: (1) students in an undergraduate Introduction to Communication Systems course; (2) an interdisciplinary group of engineering students, including computer science students, who are participating in related undergraduate research project; and (3) students in a graduate-level communications course that includes both electrical and computer engineers. Analysis of results from the first group of students showed statistically significant increases from pre-quiz to post-quiz for each of four modules on fundamental wireless communication concepts. Results for the other students have not yet been analyzed, but also appear to show substantial pre-quiz to post-quiz increases in mean scores. 

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