Sharif Digital Repository

In this work we propose using heterogeneous interconnects in power-aware chip multiprocessors (also referred to as Helia). Helia improves energy efficiency in snoop-based chip multiprocessors as it eliminates unnecessary activities in both interconnect and cache. This is achieved by using innovative snoop filtering mechanisms coupled with wire management techniques. Our optimizations rely on the observation that a high percentage of cache mismatches could be detected by utilizing a small subset but highly informative portion of the tag bits. Helia comes in two variations: source-based (S-Helia) and destination-based (D-Helia). S-Helia relies on a global snapshot of remote caches collected in... 

In this work we introduce power optimizations relying on partial tag comparison (PTC) in snoop-based chip multiprocessors. Our optimizations rely on the observation that detecting tag mismatches in a snoop-based chip multiprocessor does not require aggressively processing the entire tag. In fact, a high percentage of cache mismatches could be detected by utilizing a small subset but highly informative portion of the tag bits. Based on this, we introduce a source-based snoop filtering mechanism referred to as S-PTC. In S-PTC possible remote tag mismatches are detected prior to sending the request. We reduce power as S-PTC prevents sending unnecessary snoops and avoids unessential tag lookups... 

In this paper, we enhance previously suggested vulnerability estimation techniques by presenting a detailed modeling technique based on Input-to-Output Masking (IOM). Moreover we use our model to compute the System-level Vulnerability Factor (SVF) for data-path components in a highperformance processor. As we show, recent suggested estimation techniques overlook the issue of error masking, mainly focusing on time periods in which an error could potentially propagate in the system. In this work we show that this is incomplete as it ignores the masking impact. Our results show that including the IOM factor can significantly affect the system-level vulnerability for data-path components. As a... 

Over the past few years, radiation-induced transient errors, also referred to as soft errors, have been a severe threat to the data integrity of high-end and mainstream processors. Recent studies show that cache memories are among the most vulnerable components to soft errors within high-performance processors. Accurate modeling of the Vulnerability Factor (VF) is an essential step towards developing cost-effective protection techniques for cache memory. Although Fault Injection (FI) techniques can provide relatively accurate VF estimations they are often very time consuming. To overcome the limitation, recent analytical models were proposed to compute the cache VF in a timely fashion. In... 

Ethylene-vinyl acetate-based nanocomposites with 18 and 28 wt% vinyl acetate were prepared via solution casting method. To improve the mechanical and barrier properties of ethylene-vinyl acetate, linear low-density polyethylene, and graphene oxide were introduced to matrix. The morphological studies indicated that the graphene oxide diffraction peak disappeared in all prepared nanocomposites, probably due to its exfoliation; also proper dispersion and good interaction between nanofillers and polymer matrix were achieved. By introducing low amount of graphene oxide into the matrix, the mechanical and thermal properties and oxygen permeability were improved especially for those with 28 wt%... 

Polyethylene/clay nanocomposites (PECNC) were synthesized via in situ Ziegler-Natta catalyst polymerization. Activated catalyst for polymerization of ethylene monomer has been prepared at first by supporting of the cocatalyst on the montmorillonite (MMT) smectite type clay and then active complex for polymerization formed by reaction of TiCl4 and aluminum oxide compound on the clay. Acid wash treatment has been used for increasing hydroxyl group and porosity of the clay and subsequently activity of the catalyst. The nano- structure of composites was investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Obtained results show that silica layers of the mineral clay... 

The graphics processing unit (GPU) is the most promising candidate platform for achieving faster improvements in peak processing speed, low latency and high performance. The highly programmable and multithreaded nature of GPUs makes them a remarkable candidate for general purpose computing. However, supporting non-graphics computing on graphics processors requires addressing several architectural challenges. In this paper, we focus on improving performance by better hiding long waiting time for transferring data from the slow global memory. Furthermore, we show that the proposed method can reduce power and energy. Reduction in access time to off-chip data has a noticeable role in reducing... 

The aim of this work is to investigate thermal stability of expanded martensite. For this purpose, two martensitic stainless steels, PH 17-4 and 13-8Mo, were low temperature gas carburized. After heat treatment, it was found out that thermal stability of expanded layer of PH 17-4 is higher than that of PH 13-8Mo. Auger Electron Spectroscopy and microhardness machines were used to investigate carbon concentration and hardness of samples, respectively. X-ray diffraction was done to study crystal structures of samples before and after heat treatment  

This paper reports on the development of conductive porous scaffolds by incorporating conductive polyaniline/graphene (PAG) nanoparticles into a chitosan/gelatin matrix for its potential application in peripheral nerve regeneration. The effect of PAG content on the various properties of the scaffold is investigated and the results showed that the electrical conductivity and mechanical properties increased proportional to the increase in the PAG loading, while the porosity, swelling ratio and in vitro biodegradability decreased. In addition, the biocompatibility was evaluated by assessing the adhesion and proliferation of Schwann cells on the prepared scaffolds using SEM and MTT assay,... 

In this article, preparation of polypropylene/clay nanocomposites (PPCNC) via in situ polymerization is investigated. MgCl2/montmorillonite bisupported Ziegler-Natta catalyst was used to prepare PPCNC samples. Montmorillonite (MMT) was used as an inert support and reinforcement agent. The nanostructure of the composites was characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy techniques. Obtained results showed that silica layers of the MMT in these PPCNC were intercalated, partially exfoliated, and uniformly dispersed in the polypropylene matrix. Thermogravimetric analysis showed good thermal stability for the prepared PPCNC. Differential... 

Porous gelatin-chitosan microcarriers (MCs) with the size of 350 ± 50 μm were fabricated with blends of different gelatin/chitosan (G/C) weight ratio using an electrospraying technique. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to study the quantitative influence of process parameters, including blend ratio, voltage, and syringe pump flow rate, on MCs diameter and density. In the following, MCs of the same diameter and different G/C weight ratio (1, 2, and 3) were fabricated and their porosity and biocompatibility were investigated via SEM images and MTT assay, respectively. The results showed that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) could attach, proliferate, and spread on fabricated porous MCs... 

In this study, we reported the preparation of self cross-linked oxidized alginate-gelatin hydrogels for muscle tissue engineering. The effect of oxidation degree (OD) and oxidized alginate/gelatin (OA/GEL) weight ratio were examined and the results showed that in the constant OA/GEL weight ratio, both cross-linking density and Young's modulus enhanced by increasing OD due to increment of aldehyde groups. Furthermore, the degradation rate was increased with increasing OD probably due to decrement in alginate molecular weight during oxidation reaction facilitated degradation of alginate chains. MTT cytotoxicity assays performed on Wharton's Jelly-derived umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells... 

This work, which is a part of our ongoing studies on developing conductive scaffolds for nerve tissue engineering, reports synthesis of highly conductive binary-doped polyaniline nanoparticles and polyaniline/graphene nanocomposites. The samples were synthesized through chemical oxidation of aniline via in situ emulsion polymerization method in presence of hydrochloric acid and sodium dodecyl sulfate. Graphene nanosheets were also prepared via modified Hummer's method followed by chemical reduction using hydrazine monohydrate. Electrical conductivity measurements using a standard four-point probe technique with FTIR and UV-vis studies revealed that conductive binary-doped emeraldine salt... 

The morphological, physical and mechanical properties of polypropylene/clay nanocomposites (PPCNs) were prepared by in situ polymerization are investigated. Non-modified scmectite type clay (e.g. bentonite) was used to prepare bi-supported Ziegler-Natta catalyst of TiCl4/Mg(OEt)2/clay. Exfoliated PPCNs were obtained by in situ intercalative polymerization of propylene using produced bi-supported catalyst. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) micrograph were used to assess the clay morphology and dispersion of clay. The crystalline structures of PPCNs were characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The mechanical properties of PPCNs were...