According to one example, errors in a logical signal from a data slicer are detected and a power supply voltage is adjusted based on the detected errors.

Ultra-short pulse detection. At least some example embodiments are methods including: receiving by an antenna a series of ultra-short pulses of electromagnetic energy at a repetition frequency, the receiving creates a pulse signal; self-mixing or intermodulating the pulse signal by applying the pulse signal to a non-linear electrical device, thereby creating a modulated signal; and filtering the modulated signal to recover a filtered signal having an intermodulated frequency being the repetition frequency.

Ultra-short pulse detection. At least some example embodiments are methods including: receiving by an antenna a series of ultra-short pulses of electromagnetic energy at a repetition frequency, the receiving creates a pulse signal; self-mixing or intermodulating the pulse signal by applying the pulse signal to a non-linear electrical device, thereby creating a modulated signal; and filtering the modulated signal to recover a filtered signal having an intermodulated frequency being the repetition frequency.

Radiation receiver apparatus with a radiation receiver and a radiation entrance face, wherein the radiation receiver includes an active region that detects radiation with a target wavelength in the near-infrared, an optical element is arranged between the radiation entrance face and the radiation receiver, an optical axis of the optical element extends through the radiation receiver, the optical element is shaped and arranged relative to the radiation receiver such that, of radiation incident on the radiation entrance face at an angle of greater than or equal to 40° to the optical axis, at most 10% is incident on the radiation receiver, and a visible light filter is formed between the radiation receiver and the radiation entrance face.

A decoding method includes: receiving a plurality of subcarrier signals each including encoded data; acquiring a predetermined amount of data from each of the plurality of subcarrier signals; correcting errors in the plurality of subcarrier signals by performing decoding arithmetic processing on the respective predetermined amounts of data acquired from the plurality of subcarrier signals in a time-division manner; and causing the decoding arithmetic processing to be consecutively performed on each of the predetermined amounts of data a predetermined number of times.

A decoding method includes: receiving a plurality of subcarrier signals each including encoded data; acquiring a predetermined amount of data from each of the plurality of subcarrier signals; correcting errors in the plurality of subcarrier signals by performing decoding arithmetic processing on the respective predetermined amounts of data acquired from the plurality of subcarrier signals in a time-division manner; and causing the decoding arithmetic processing to be consecutively performed on each of the predetermined amounts of data a predetermined number of times.

Materials containing picocrystalline quantum dots that form artificial atoms are disclosed. The picocrystalline quantum dots (in the form of born icosahedra with a nearly-symmetrical nuclear configuration) can replace corner silicon atoms in a structure that demonstrates both short range and long-range order as determined by x-ray diffraction of actual samples. A novel class of boron-rich compositions that self-assemble from boron, silicon, hydrogen and, optionally, oxygen is also disclosed. The preferred stoichiometric range for the compositions is (B.sub.12H.sub.w).sub.xSi.sub.yO.sub.z with 3≤w≤5, 2≤x≤4, 2≤y≤5 and 0≤z≤3. By varying oxygen content and the presence or absence of a significant impurity such as gold, unique electrical devices can be constructed that improve upon and are compatible with current semiconductor technology.

An optical assembly may include a platform disposed within a housing that has a limited space. The platform may be tilted by a first angle to fit a fiber array into the limited space of the housing. The optical assembly may also include a silicon photonics device mounted on the tilted platform. The silicon photonics device may include a grating coupler. The optical assembly may also include the fiber array directly coupled to the grating coupler on the silicon photonics device at a coupling position that deviates from a vertical coupling position by a second angle.

An optical assembly may include a platform disposed within a housing that has a limited space. The platform may be tilted by a first angle to fit a fiber array into the limited space of the housing. The optical assembly may also include a silicon photonics device mounted on the tilted platform. The silicon photonics device may include a grating coupler. The optical assembly may also include the fiber array directly coupled to the grating coupler on the silicon photonics device at a coupling position that deviates from a vertical coupling position by a second angle.

An example apparatus includes a mode selective detector, a measurement module, a difference calculator and a threshold and alarm module. The mode selective detector detects a plurality of modes of a spatially multiplexed signal. The measurement module measures a parameter for the plurality of modes of the spatially multiplexed signal, wherein the parameter is a power or a signal to noise ratio (SNR). The difference calculator compares the measured parameter among a subset modes and/or among a known set of unperturbed parameters and determines a differential, the subset including at least one mode. The threshold and alarm module sets an alarm indicator when the differential is out of bounds.