Patent Grant
11115131
There are several low-power cryogenic electronic technologies that require broadband communication of analog or digital data to conventional electronic systems at room temperature. These include ultrafast superconducting circuits for data conversion, radio communications, and computing, as well as superconducting circuits for quantum computing and sensitive imaging arrays across the electromagnetic spectrum. A key problem with these systems is that the characteristic voltage output of these low-power systems is 1 mV or even less, while room-temperature semiconductor electronic devices have a typical voltage level of order 1 V or more. In some cases, one can use a high-gain transistor amplifier to bridge this gap, but such transistor amplifiers may dissipate too much power for the cryogenic environment. Furthermore, the electrically conductive high-bandwidth transmission output lines themselves may conduct too much heat to the cryogenic environment. (See
The key issues for such devices include how much power dissipation is required in or near the cryocooler which maintains the superconductive electronics at operating temperature, how much heat transfer occurs into the cryocooler through the transmission lines, and how well the transmission lines perform. Ancillary issues relate to how large and/or complex are, and what type of circuits within the cryocooler are required to drive the transmission lines.
A promising alternative to electrical transmission lines is optical communication via optical fibers, which can be constructed to have high performance while conducting very little heat. Note that these optical transmission lines need not be very long, and therefore the optical signal may be weak as compared to long distance room temperature telecommunication fibers. This requires an electro-optic transducer at the low-temperature end, e.g., within the cryocooler or at an intermediate temperature, of which several types are well known in the prior art. These include several types of small semiconductor lasers (such as vertical cavity surface emitting lasers or VCSELs) and light-emitting diodes (LEDs). (See
Alternatively, one may send an optical fiber with a carrier optical wave down to the cryogenic environment, and subject this carrier wave to modulation in an electro-optic modulator device. Several types of modulator devices are known in the prior art, but most of these are semiconductor devices that require an input voltage of order 1 V or more, and may also dissipate significant levels of power. Again, one could use a transistor amplifier to bridge the voltage gap, with the same power limitations as above. (See
See “Direct drive optical link for high-speed cryogenic data readout”, www.sbir.gov/sbirsearch/detail/377697, Navy ID N11A-022-0400; Marek Osinski and Gennady A. Smolyakov; “Injection locked microring lasers for ultrafast modulation”, spie.org/x84982.xml.
The prior art does not provide an optical source or modulator that is sensitive to an input signal of 1 mV or less, which dissipates very little heat and requires little or no input amplification to produce a detectable signal through an optical fiber of about 5-250 cm.
Very recently, electro-optic modulators based on the unique material graphene have been reported. Graphene comprises a single atomic layer of a hexagonal lattice of carbon atoms (though multiple layers may be provided in some cases), and can be viewed as a zero-gap semiconductor with extremely high electron mobility. (In multiple layer structures, electron mobility is anisotropic). Graphene is also a strong optical absorber over a broad optical band, which is remarkable given its single atomic layer. Together, these enable very small optoelectronic devices with low levels of power dissipation.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 9,360,689, and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 2014/0056551 (Liu et al), “Graphene Based Optical Modulator”, (see
All of these disclose devices designed to operate at room temperature, with no cryogenic properties disclosed or predicted. Some of these devices are somewhat sensitive to small voltages, and further have other important advantages, such as compact size and broad optical bandwidth.
There are several recent reports of graphene devices operating at cryogenic temperatures, including hybrid devices with superconducting materials. See, for example, see:
Each reference cited herein is expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
The present technology provides a cryogenic optoelectronic data link which supports transmission of data out of a cryogenic environment, e.g., less than 80K or less than 25K, or less than 12.5K, as a modulated optical signal. The optical modulator comprises a graphene sheet whose optical properties are modulated by a low voltage (e.g., <1 mV) electrical signal, operating on an optical signal that may be provided internally to or externally from the cryocooler. The term “optical” includes wavelengths from 100 μm to 32 nm, but preferably within a range to which a silicon or germanium photodetector is responsive, e.g., 190-1700 nm. A preferred embodiment comprises, at the sending end, an optical modulator based on at least one graphene sheet, configured to operate at cryogenic temperatures less than about 25K, which is sensitive to very small voltage levels of order 1 mV. The sensitivity is based on the tunability of the Fermi energy of the graphene via the field effect. A key aspect of the invention is the realization that because of the unique electronic band structure of graphene (in particular, the absence of an energy gap between the valence and conduction bands), the voltage sensitivity of a properly designed optical modulator will be much greater at cryogenic temperatures than at room temperature. Since the Fermi level smearing is approximately kBT (and so is the noise energy of the device), a scaling analysis shows that this modulator should become more sensitive, approximately as 1/T. Comparing a temperature of 4 K with room temperature (300 K), it is expected that the sensitivity to improve by a factor of about 300/4=75. In contrast to a conventional semiconductor device, where the voltage scale ˜1V is set by the typical energy gap ˜1 eV, here the voltage sensitivity is ˜4 kBT/e, to get above the thermal noise. This gives a sensitivity ˜0.1 V at room temperature, ˜1 mV at 4K, and intermediate values in between.
Because of the improved sensitivity, in a preferred embodiment, the graphene modulator may be used to directly interface with the output from a superconducting circuit, such as a rapid single flux quantum (RSFQ) circuit based on niobium or niobium nitride trilayer Josephson junctions, without the need for any semiconductor transistor amplifier, as shown in the block diagram of
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the modulator may comprise a high-Q optical resonator of which the graphene sheet is strongly coupled, similar to that shown in
In another preferred embodiment, a modulator may be integrated with a superconducting circuit on the same chip. For example,
It is noted that an optical detector may also be created using a similar structure or enhanced structure, e.g., an ultra-broadband photodetector design based on a graphene double-layer heterostructure. For example, see Liu, Chang-Hua; Chang, You-Chia; Norris, Theodore B.; Zhong, Zhaohui; “Ti-Graphene photodetectors with ultra-broadband and high responsivity at room temperature”, Nat Nano, (2014 April), vol. 9, iss. 4, pp. 273-278, dx.doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2014.31, 10.1038/nnano.2014.31. www.nature.com/nnano/journal/v9/n4/abs/nnano.2014.31.html#supplementary-i-nformation. The detector is a phototransistor consisting of a pair of stacked graphene monolayers (top layer, gate; bottom layer, channel) separated by a thin tunnel barrier. Under optical illumination, photoexcited hot carriers generated in the top layer tunnel into the bottom layer, leading to a charge build-up on the gate and a strong photogating effect on the channel conductance. The devices demonstrated room-temperature photodetection from the visible to the mid-infrared range, with mid-infrared responsivity higher than 1 A W−1. See also,
A quantum stark effect modulator or sensor may also be employed, using a grapheme layer heterostructure. Liu, Ming, et al. “A graphene-based broadband optical modulator.” Nature 474.7349 (2011): 64-67; Min, Hongki, et al. “Intrinsic and Rashba spin-orbit interactions in graphene sheets.” Physical Review B 74.16 (2006): 165310; Lu, Zhaolin, and Wangshi Zhao. “Nanoscale electro-optic modulators based on graphene-slot waveguides.” JOSA B 29.6 (2012): 1490-1496.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the sending module of the cryogenic optoelectronic data link is at a cryogenic temperature of less than 100 K, or even more preferred, less than 10 K. The receiving module of the cryogenic optoelectronic data link may be at room temperature, or alternatively could also be at a cryogenic temperature, or any temperature less than room temperature. For example, one may consider a data link between two superconducting circuits on separate chips, but sharing the same cryogenic environment. Or the receiving module may be located in a different cryogenic environment. In another example, the sending and receiving modules are located at substantially different temperatures, such as 4 K for the sending module and 30-100 K for the receiving module, as might be the case if the optoelectronic data links connected a low-temperature superconducting circuit with a high-temperature superconducting circuit. In another example, the optoelectronic data link might connect an ultra-low-temperature circuit operating at 1 K or less (such as a sensor or quantum computing circuit) with a low temperature circuit operating at 4 K or above. These examples are in no way exclusive, and just illustrate the wide range of potential cryogenic applications for which the invention may solve the data interface problem.
The optoelectronic demodulator circuit at the receiving module may comprise a photoconductive (or photoresistive) device. The photoconductive device may also comprise a low-power optoelectronic device comprising at least one graphene sheet (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 8,053,782), which may also be operated at a temperature below room temperature. However, for a receiver at room temperature, the power constraint may be less critical, and other more conventional materials may suffice.
In general, the performance criteria are functionally specified, and would generally involve the modulator, communication channel and receiver, to set forth minimum performance criteria. In general, in a digital communication system, the raw bit error rate should be less than 10−2 or 10−3, and typically less than 10−6. This margin allows the performance to be extended, at the expense of throughput, by use of error detection and correction codes, as well as redundancy. Below 10−2 bit error rate, it is likely that the required codes (encoding) for reliable communications would consume a sufficient amount of the available bandwidth to render the communication link infeasible.
The preferred modulators receive an input having a voltage of less than 10 mV peak, and preferably less than about 1 mV peak, and are typically not amplified to a higher voltage. The lack of a bandgap in graphene and the low noise at cryogenic temperatures mean that the properties, including optical properties, may be effectively modulated near 0V. Therefore, with such inputs, a suitable phase and/or amplitude modulation may be achieved. For example, in a low noise environment, an amplitude change of 0.05 dB, 0.1 dB, or 0.2 dB should be detectable. Likewise, a phase shift of 0.05 radians, 0.1 radians, or 0.2 radians should be detectable.
In a preferred embodiment, the optical beam is frequency modulated (and at least during transitions, is phase modulated). Under such circumstances, the modulated signal is distinct from the carrier, and the ratio or phase relationship is not directly relevant. Rather, the carrier may be filtered from modulated signal, and the modulated signal is detectable if it is detectable or statistically distinguishable from the noise. The noise, in turn, derived from the three basic components of the system, the modulator, communication channel, and receiver. Since the modulator operates at cryogenic temperatures, which may be <11 K, there is a low thermal noise, and receiver noise may dominate the analysis. Thus, the low voltage input signal can be effectively used, even if the fractional change in properties of the modulated material, which in this case is preferably a single atomic monolayer, and more preferably graphene, is small.
In some cases, the system operates in an analog mode, or the performance is not considered in terms of “bit” error rates, but rather analog distortion. This may be true even if the modulating signal is generated as digital pulses, e.g., from Josephson junctions. For example, in a radio receiver system, the pulses may represent a pulse modulated oversampled representation of a radio frequency channel or band, and the output is to be demodulated as a radio frequency signal. This may be appropriate where the purpose of the superconducting electronics is to deconvolve multiple signals which are received together. In this case, the errors may be considered statistically instead of digitally, though error correction and detection codes would not be applicable to improve performance, but perhaps redundant communication channels if subject to uncorrelated errors might be.
It is therefore an object to provide an electro-optic communication system, comprising: an optical modulation module, comprising at least one layer of graphene, configured to modulate an optical carrier input signal based a voltage input signal, to generate a modulated optical signal; and an optical receiving module, configured to demodulate the modulated optical signal to produce a representation of the voltage input signal. The optical receiving module may be adapted to be responsive to changes in the amplitude of the voltage input signal of less than about 10 mV, and more preferably less than about 1 mV, to communicate digital signals e.g., at a rate of at least 1 gigabits per second at a bit error rate of less than 10−3. The receiver may employ traditional, room temperature technologies, while the modulator is preferably maintained at a cryogenic temperature, preferably less than 120K, more preferably less than 100K, and for example at <25K, <11K, and about 4K. According to one embodiment, a superconducting contact material induces at least a portion of the graphene into a superconducting state.
It is also an object to provide an optical modulator, comprising: at least one layer of graphene, modulated by a voltage input signal having an amplitude less than about 10 mV, at a temperature of less than about 100 K, and at a rate of at least 1 gigabits per second or a frequency of at least 1 GHz, the at least one layer of graphene having an optical property altered by the voltage input signal to produce a modulated optical signal from an optical carrier signal; and at least one optical port configured to transmit the modulated optical signal.
It is a still further object to provide a cryogenic optoelectronic modulator, comprising: at least one voltage input port, configured to receive at least one input signal having a full scale magnitude less than about 10 mV; a pathway configured to carry the at least one input signal, which is superconducting at temperatures below 100K; an optical carrier input port, configured to receive an optical carrier wave; an electro-optic modulator, configured to operate at a cryogenic temperature less than about 100 K, comprising at least one layer of graphene, configured to modulate the optical carrier wave in dependence on at least the at least one input signal to produce a modulated optical carrier wave; and a modulated optical output port, configured to transmit the modulated optical carrier wave.
It is therefore an object to provide an electro-optic communication method, comprising: providing an optical modulation module, comprising at least one layer of graphene, configured to modulate an optical carrier input signal based a voltage input signal, to generate a modulated optical signal; modulating an optical carrier with the optical modulation module, and demodulating the modulated optical signal with an optical receiving module, to produce a representation of the voltage input signal.
It is also an object to provide an optical modulation method, comprising: providing at least one layer of graphene, having an optical property modulated by a voltage input signal having an amplitude less than about 10 mV, at a temperature of less than about 100 K, and at a rate of at least 1 gigabits per second or a frequency of at least 1 GHz, to produce a modulated optical signal from an optical carrier signal; and transmitting the modulated optical signal through at least one optical port.
It is a still further object to provide a cryogenic optoelectronic modulation method, comprising: receiving at least one input signal having a full scale magnitude less than about 10 mV, communicated over at least a pathway which is superconducting at temperatures below 100K; receiving an optical carrier wave; and modulating the optical carrier wave with an electro-optic modulator, operating at a cryogenic temperature less than about 100 K, comprising at least one layer of graphene, dependent on at least the at least one input signal, to produce a modulated optical carrier wave.
The at least one input signal may have a full scale magnitude less than about 1 mV.
The pathway configured to carry the at least one input signal, which is superconducting at temperatures below 100K may be a high temperature superconductor, a low temperature superconductor, and is preferably niobium or niobium nitride.
The optical carrier input port may be a free space optic or a solid waveguide, e.g., a fiber optic or conduit disposed on an integrated circuit.
The optical carrier is typically generated outside of a cryogenic cryocooler, and fed in through a fiber optic. However, in some cases, a cryogenic electromagnetic radiation source may be provided, and indeed in some cases the electromagnetic radiation source may comprise graphene.
The electro-optic modulator may be configured to operate at a cryogenic temperature less than about 50K, 25K, 12K, or 4K (liquid helium), or below. Typically, microKelvin temperature operation is inefficient if there is incident electromagnetic radiation, though if carefully controlled, the optical heating may be less than the heat leakage through Ohmic contacts.
The electro-optic modulator may thus operate at a temperature near 4 K.
The modulated optical carrier may have a modulation of amplitude of at least 0.2 dB. The modulated optical carrier may have a modulation of phase of at least 0.02 radians. The modulated optical carrier may be frequency modulated, e.g., by a graphene ring oscillator.
The at least one input signal may have at least one frequency component greater than about 1 GHz. The modulated optical carrier wave may represent the at least one frequency component greater than about 1 GHz with a signal to noise ratio of at least 1 dB and a modulation of amplitude of at least 0.2 dB or a modulation of phase of at least 0.02 radians. The modulated signal may be a frequency modulated optical signal having an amplitude of greater than about −160 dB with respect to the carrier optical signal in the modulated output, and preferably greater than about −140 dB, and more preferably greater than about −120 dB. The frequency modulated optical signal is preferably modulated at a frequency of at least 10 GHz, and more preferably at least 20 GHz, from the carrier optical frequency.
The at least one layer of graphene may be configured to change optical properties in response to the at least one input signal.
The at least one input signal may have a bandwidth of at least 10 GHz.
The at least one voltage input port may be connected to an output of a superconducting circuit, without an intervening transistor amplifier. The superconducting circuit and the electro-optic modulator may be integrated on a common substrate.
A plurality of voltage input ports may be provided, configured to carry a plurality of input signals that are multiplexed on the optical carrier wave by the electro-optic modulator. For example, the multiplexing may comprise wavelength division multiplexing a plurality of different optical carrier wavelengths. In this case, a plurality of optical ting modulators are provided, with different nominal modulation frequencies, e.g., 10 GHz, 20 GHz, 30 GHz, etc., and thus the respective input signals modulate the carrier optical signal in different bands, separable by filtering at the receiver.
According to another embodiment, a plurality of optical carriers are provided at different wavelengths, and the modulated optical carrier may have a respective modulation for each of a plurality of optical carrier wavelengths.
According to further embodiment, the output modulated signal(s) are carrier by a multimode optical fiber, and are separated according to mode at the receiver. In a multimode embodiment, each modulated signal can have the same nominal modulation frequency (or be modulated at baseband).
The system may comprise an integrated optical waveguide adjacent to at least one layer of graphene.
An optical fiber may be provided which is configured to carry at least one of the optical carrier wave and the modulated optical carrier wave.
The electro-optic modulator may comprise an optical resonator, e.g., a micro-ring resonator. The optical resonator may comprise a linear micro-resonator. The electro-optic modulator may comprise a plurality of optical resonators, each driven by one of a plurality of input signals, where each resonator has a unique and different resonant frequency. The plurality of resonant frequencies of the plurality of resonators may comprise an optical frequency comb.
The at least one input signal may comprise a single-bit serial digital signal. Alternately, the at least one input signal may comprise a serial multi-bit digital signal or a plurality of parallel digital signals. The at least one input signal may also comprise one or more analog signals.
The energy per bit dissipated by the electro-optic modulator at the cryogenic temperature is preferably less than about 1 pJ/bit.
The present technology may be used to provide an external interface for a superconducting circuit comprising an ultrafast microprocessor that generates 64-bit digital words at a clock rate of 25 GHz, at a temperature of 4 K. Such a circuit could be designed using Rapid-Single-Flux-Quantum (RSFQ) logic, or one of its low-power alternatives known as Reciprocal Quantum Logic (RQL), Energy-Efficient RSFQ, or Quantum Flux Parametron. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,571,614; 7,843,209; 7,786,748.
Logic gates in these technologies exhibit switching energies of order 10−18 J/gate, corresponding to signal levels of order 1 mV and 0.5 mA for 2 ps. For a chip with one million gates at a clock rate of 25 GHz, this corresponds to a total power dissipation of 25 mW. The power associated with input/output lines and drivers at 4 K should be comparable to this. Taking a 64-bit data bus from 4 K to room temperature, 25 mW corresponds to 0.015 pJ/bit, an extremely small value. In contrast, most conventional data links require energies much greater than 1 pJ/bit.
Table 1 presents estimates of the link energy budget for the Cryogenic Graphene Modulator approach of the present invention, based on the system of
In Table 2 below, the results of Table 1 are compared to other alternative link technologies (
Two alternative electro-optic modulators (
In contrast, the block diagram of
A single graphene sheet may be deposited by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) or plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). The graphene sheet may be deposited on top of a variety of substrates including silicon, silicon nitride, silicon dioxide, and aluminum oxide. See, for example, US 2011/0303899; US 2014/0255621, Gao, Libo; Ni, Guang-Xin; Liu, Yanpeng; Liu, Bo; Castro Neto, Antonio H.; Loh, Kian Ping; “TI-Face-to-face transfer of wafer-scale graphene films”, Nature 2014/01/09 505(7482) pp. 190-194, dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature12763. A double graphene sheet may be produced by depositing the first graphene sheet, followed by thin dielectric insulator such as aluminum oxide, followed by the second graphene sheet.
While direct vacuum deposition of one or more graphene sheets onto the desired substrate is preferred, an optimized method for depositing high-quality graphene may not be available on some substrates. Therefore, an alternative method involves transfer of a graphene sheet deposited on a different substrate, etched from that substrate, and transferred to the desired substrate. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,906,245; 9,023,166; 8,926,852; and US 2014/0231002.
The optical signal may preferably be confined in an optical waveguide (see
It is further noted that the optical energy may be coupled to electrons in graphene to resemble Dirac fermion photon coupling, Antonio H. Castro Neto, “Graphene: Phonons behaving badly,” Nature Materials, vol. 6, p. 176, March 2007; Gupta, Awnish, et al. “Raman scattering from high-frequency phonons in supported n-graphene layer films.” Nano letters 6.12 (2006): 2667-2673; Yan, Jun, et al. “Electric field effect tuning of electron-phonon coupling in graphene.” Physical review letters 98.16 (2007): 166802; Sensale-Rodriguez, Berardi, et al. “Broadband graphene terahertz modulators enabled by intraband transitions.” Nature communications 3 (2012): 780; Berardi Sensale-Rodriguez, “Graphene-Based Optoelectronics”, J. Lightwave Tech., 33(5):1100-1108 (Mar. 1, 2015); Andersen, David R. “Graphene-based long-wave infrared TM surface plasmon modulator.” JOSA B 27.4 (2010): 818-823; Li, Wei, et al. “Ultrafast all-optical graphene modulator.” Nano letters 14.2 (2014): 955-959. This has implications for a graphene structure that carries the optical energy over some distance, and which can be modulated by external influences over that distance. See also, Bart Ludbrook, Giorgio Levy, Pascal Nigge, Marta Zonno, Michael Schneider, David Dvorak, Christian Veenstra, Sergey Zhdanovich, Douglas Wong, Pinder Dosanjh, Carola StraBer, Alexander Stohr, Stiven Forti, Christian Ast, Ulrich Starke, Andrea Damascelli, “Evidence for superconductivity in Li-decorated monolayer graphene”, arXiv:1508.05925v2, PNAS, 112(38):11795-11799 (Sep. 22, 2015); Jin-Soo Shin and Jin Tae Kim, “Broadband silicon optical modulator using a graphene-integrated hybrid plasmonic waveguide”, Nanotechnology 26 (2015) 365201 (8pp) doi:10.1088/0957-4484/26/36/365201.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, portions of the optical waveguide may comprise a micro-ring resonator, similar to that shown in
At least a portion of the resonator may be in contact with at least one graphene sheet, the Fermi energy of which may be tuned using an applied voltage. This will change the optical absorption coefficient of the graphene, modulating the resonant frequency and Q of the resonator. Furthermore, the resonator may be coupled to an optical transmission line, also comprising an optical waveguide. If an applied microwave frequency signal is applied to the graphene sheet(s), this will induce a change in the effective impedance of the resonator. If a resonant frequency optical carrier signal is propagating along the transmission line, such a change in the impedance will modulate the optical carrier signal.
In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, a plurality of resonators may be coupled to the same optical transmission line, but the resonators are designed to have slightly different resonant frequencies (see
The example in
There are significant advantages in the use of a single output fiber, particularly when the number N is large. For example, one may employ an array of 64 resonators to output the elements of a 64-bit digital word. Sending them on a single line will help to assure that proper synchronization is maintained. Furthermore, device packaging and integration may be greatly simplified.
There are a wide variety of cryogenic electronic systems that may benefit from the use of low-voltage optical output, at temperatures from ˜100 K down to 100 mK and below. The examples above focused on digital outputs from fast superconducting computers operating at 4K, based on niobium Josephson junctions. These optical output systems may also be used for digital outputs from precision cryogenic instruments such as fast digital samplers, digital radio receiver systems, and ultrafast switching networks. Similar modulators can also be used for analog output, from superconducting and other cryogenic sensor arrays. These may include, for example, SQUID sensors for biomagnetic imaging, single-photon sensors for astronomical imaging (based on superconducting nanowires, transition-edge sensors, kinetic inductance bolometers, or superconducting tunnel junctions), terahertz heterodyne receivers (based on superconducting tunnel junctions, hot-electron microbolometers, or cooled Schottky diodes), and superconducting quantum interference filter (SQIF) arrays for sensitive radio receivers. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,665,553; 7,078,694; 7,991,013; 7,598,897; 7,362,125; 8,179,133; 6,310,350. They may also include outputs from arrays of elements in cryogenic quantum computing systems, which may operate at temperatures of 100 mK or below. Advantageously, graphene may also be used to implement qubits of the quantum computers, and therefore the graphene deposition for external interfacing may occur in a common process with deposition to form the qubit.
The range of systems that may benefit from the use of graphene electro-optic modulators may also include high-temperature superconducting systems, based on cuprates that may operate as high as ˜100 K, magnesium diboride devices that may operate up to 40 K, and iron-based superconductors that may operate up to ˜50 K, as well as non-superconducting sensors that operate in the cryogenic regime up to ˜100 K. See, e.g., CA 2600414; U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,155,318; 7,132,655.
These examples are not to be understood as limiting the invention, but rather as examples that illustrate the wide range of systems and applications that may become clear to those skilled in the art.
Each reference cited herein is expressly incorporated herein in its entirety, for its respective descriptions and teachings. The scope of the present invention includes the various combinations, subcombinations and permutations of the elements disclosed herein either expressly or through incorporation. No element shall be deemed critical or required unless specified a being a necessary element.
The present application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/153,659, filed Oct. 5, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,644,809, issued May 5, 2020, which is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/356,030, filed Nov. 18, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,097,281, issued Oct. 9, 2018, which is a non-provisional of, and claims benefit of priority from U.S. Provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/256,991, filed Nov. 18, 2015, the entirety of which is expressly incorporated herein by reference.
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| Number | Date | Country | |
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| Parent | 16153659 | Oct 2018 | US |
| Child | 16867462 | US | |
| Parent | 15356030 | Nov 2016 | US |
| Child | 16153659 | US |
