Abstract: One or more heating elements comprise a heating element. One or more elongated beams comprise an elongated beam. The heating element is coupled with the elongated beam and induces a time-varying thermal gradient in the elongated beam to cause one or more oscillations of one or more of the one or more elongated beams.

Abstract: A highly compact inductor formed on opposite faces of a dielectric substrate. Sets of parallel spaced conductive traces formed on the opposite faces of the substrate are interconnected by metallized vias through the substrate, in such a way as to form a continuous spiral conductive path. The inductor is preferably formed as two closely adjacent segments, each with conductive traces on each face of the substrate and each having metallized vias interconnecting the conductive traces. The segments are electrically connected in series and produce a magnetic field that extends through each segment in opposite directions and is closely coupled from one segment to the other. The inductor is, therefore, electromagnetically similar to a wire-wound toroidal inductor, providing high inductance and contourable Q values, but is highly compact, especially in the z-axis direction normal to the substrate.

Abstract: A fiber-optic gyroscope apparatus includes a light source, an optical coupler, a photodetector and an optical circuit device having at least one input, at least two outputs and a birefringent crystal substrate waveguide as a first segment of a Lyot type depolarizer between the input and the outputs. An input fiber of polarization maintaining fiber composition operating as a second segment of a Lyot type depolarizer is located between the optical coupler and the optical circuit device. A sensing coil is coupled to the outputs of the optical circuit device. The input fiber is fixed at approximately 45 degrees to the waveguide, with the input fiber and waveguide cooperating to form a Lyot type depolarizer. Other implementations of the fiber-optic gyroscope apparatus are also disclosed.

Abstract: A method (10) for etching a through via (116, 118) on a wafer (100) of semiconductor material (102), wherein the wafer (100) has a front side surface (110) and a backside surface (106), is described. A layer of photoresist material (104) is applied to the backside surface (106). The layer of photoresist (104) is then exposed to a light source through a mask having a pre-selected pattern, wherein the developed photoresist is removed to form at least one via (112, 114) in the remaining photoresist layer (104). The remaining photoresist layer (104?) is then baked in order to form a hardened, remaining photoresist layer (104?). The semiconductor material 102 adjacent to the at least one via (112, 114) is then gas plasma etched to form a through via (116, 118) between the backside surface (106) and the front side surface (110).

Abstract: A PIN electro-optical traveling wave modulator (10) including diffraction gratings (34, 36) positioned at opposing sides of an optical waveguide (20) that act to change the propagation pattern of the waveguide (20). The modulator (10) includes an N-type layer (14), a P-type layer (18) and an intrinsic layer (16) acting as the waveguide (20). A metal electrode (26) is in electrical contact with the N-type layer (14), and a metal electrode (30) is in electrical contact with the P-type layer (18). The electrodes (26, 30) define an RF transmission line. An optical wave (22) propagates along the waveguide (20) and interacts with the gratings (34, 36) which slow the optical wave (22) to match its speed to the speed of the RF wave in the transmission line. In one embodiment, the gratings (34, 36) are 2-D gratings formed by vertical holes (38) in the waveguide (20).

Abstract: A multi-carrier receiver system and method for receiving a transmission frequency multi-carrier signal include a feedforward cancellation loop. A frequency conversion circuit generates an intermediate frequency (IF) multi-carrier signal based on the transmission frequency multi-carrier signal. The feedforward cancellation loop generates an amplitude corrected multi-carrier signal based on the IF multi-carrier signal such that the amplitude corrected multi-carrier signal has a reduced dynamic range with respect to the IF multi-carrier signal. A primary A/D converter having a significantly lower dynamic range requirements can therefore generate a digital multi-carrier signal based on the amplitude corrected multi-carrier signal. The feedforward cancellation loop therefore enables the primary A/D converter to process multi-carrier signals without the need for large dynamic range requirements.

Abstract: An encoder circuit and a related method for its operation, in which digital encoding, such as differential phase-shift keyed (DPSK) encoding, is performed as a parallel operation on N bits at a time. Each encoded bit is both output in parallel with the others of the N bits and is coupled as an input to encode the immediately next bit in the input data stream. The Nth encoded bit is fed back to the first encoder stage for use in encoding the (N+1)th bit in the input stream. The encoder typically includes a serial-to-parallel converter at the encoder inputs, and a parallel-to-serial converter at the encoder outputs.

Abstract: An exemplary system that provides for navigation redundancy includes first and second navigation components adapted to determine first and second navigation parameters, respectively. A network component determines a relationship between the first and second navigation components, wherein the relationship describes a navigation solution for the second navigation component in terms of the first navigation component. A health monitor determines a health indicator for the second navigation component. The second navigation component determines a navigation solution for the second navigation parameters when the health indicator indicates a healthy condition. The network component determines a navigation solution for the second navigation parameters based on the relationship that describes behavior of the second navigation component in terms of the first navigation component when the health indicator indicates an unhealthy condition.