Abstract: A transistor comprises a planar layer of a topological material located between a gate electrode and a dielectric layer. The topological material exhibits a topological phase transition between a trivial state and a non-trivial state at a critical electric field strength on application of an electric field in a direction perpendicular to the planar layer. The topological material exhibits a change in bandgap, in the presence of the electric field, having a Rashba spin-dependent bandgap contribution that is at least three times as large as a non-spin-dependent bandgap contribution.

Abstract: The present disclosure provides a method for synthesizing pentlandite-type bimetallic (Fe·Co)9S8 compounds. The method includes grinding and mixing sulfur powder with metal salts of Fe and Co to form a homogeneous mixture, and conducting solid-state pyrolysis of the mixture at a temperature of 900° C. in an Argon atmosphere. The synthesized (Fe·Co)9S8 compound can be used as electrode material in electrochemical processes. In some embodiments, the method further includes dispersing the synthesized (Fe·Co)9S8 in a Nafion and isopropanol mixture to form a suspension, and coating the suspension on a glassy carbon electrode to form an electrode comprising (Fe·Co)9S8 pentlandite. The method provides a streamlined approach to synthesizing (Fe·Co)9S8 pentlandite, a material with potential applications in renewable energy technologies including electrocatalyst for OER in water splitting for hydrogen production.

Abstract: The present disclosure provides a method for synthesizing cobalt-nickel alloy nanoparticles. The method involves dissolving potassium hydroxide in a mixture of ethylene glycol and N, N-dimethylformamide. Cobalt II acetylacetonate and nickel II acetylacetonate are added to the solution. The cobalt II acetylacetonate and nickel II acetylacetonate are stirred into the solution until the cobalt II acetylacetonate and nickel II acetylacetonate have dissolved. The solution is transferred to an autoclave, which in some embodiments is lined with PTFE. The autoclave is heated until the nanoparticles have been synthesized. In some embodiments, the autoclave is heated at 180° C. for 8 hours. The synthesized nanoparticles are collected by centrifuging the product having the synthesized nanoparticles. The nanoparticles are characterized and evaluated for oxygen reduction reaction.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a structure comprising: a gate electrode, a dielectric layer, and a planar layer of a topological material being separated from the gate electrode by at least the dielectric layer, and having a contact interface with the dielectric layer to generate an electric field-controlled Rashba spin-orbit interaction on application of an electric field thereto, wherein the topological material exhibits a topological phase transition between a trivial state and a non-trivial state at a critical electric field strength on application of the electric field, wherein the gate electrode is configured to apply the electric field across the planar layer in a direction perpendicular to a plane of the planar layer; and wherein the topological material exhibits a change in bandgap, in the presence of the electric field, having a spin-dependent contribution represented by a proportionality constant ?R and a non-spin-dependent contribution represented by a proportionality constant ?v; and wherein ?R>?v/3.

Abstract: A method and a system described herein provide optimizing image and/or video compression for machine perception. According to an aspect, the method comprises receiving a raw image frame from a camera sensor; detecting a predefined object in the raw image frame and marking a region around the predefined object within the raw image frame as ROI. Based on the ROI, a partitioning scheme, a prediction mode, and quantization parameter are determined for improving coding efficiency. Machine perception efficiency is improved by selecting a quantization parameter table used for compressing and encoding the raw image or video frame based on a selected machine vision task. The selection of the quantization parameter table is based on training of the selected machine vision task using cost function optimization.

Abstract: The present invention discloses a simple low cost framework for robust operational control of video encoders. The framework comprises a two-layer architecture that effectively decouples the processes of video bit rate control and video quality/distortion control. The upper layer includes a video bit rate controller that operates on a single picture/picture-slice, or a set of pictures/picture-slices, and is based on feedback control techniques used in automatic control systems. The lower layer includes a video quality/distortion controller that operates at the level of blocks of pixels, and reduces distortion artifacts. The decoupled nature of the encoder control architecture of the present invention provides the flexibility of combining various feedback control algorithms and various distortion reduction schemes.

Abstract: In one aspect, the present invention discloses a simple low cost framework for robust operational control of video encoders. The framework comprises a two-layer architecture that effectively decouples the processes of video bit rate control and video quality/distortion control. The upper layer includes a video bit rate controller that operates on a single picture/picture-slice, or a set of pictures/picture-slices, and is based on feedback control techniques used in automatic control systems. The lower layer includes a video quality/distortion controller that operates at the level of blocks of pixels, and reduces distortion artifacts. The decoupled nature of the encoder control architecture of the present invention provides the flexibility of combining various feedback control algorithms and various distortion reduction schemes.