Prof. Vasilis Christofilakis

Earth-to-Earth Microwave Rain Attenuation Measurements: A Survey On the Recent Literature

Katerina K. Naka

In this paper, a prototype photoplethysmography (PPG) electronic device is presented for the distinction of individuals with congestive heart failure (CHF) from the healthy (H) by applying the concept of Natural Time Analysis (NTA). Data were collected simultaneously with a conventional three-electrode electrocardiography (ECG) system and our prototype PPG electronic device from H and CHF volunteers at the 2nd Department of Cardiology, Medical School of Ioannina, Greece. Statistical analysis of the results show a clear separation of CHF from H subjects by means of NTA for both the conventional ECG system and our PPG prototype system, with a clearly better distinction for the second one which additionally inherits the advantages of a low-cost portable device.

1 September 2020 in Symmetry

Journal Article

A new portable ELF Schumann resonance receiver: design and detailed analysis of the antenna and the analog front-end

Alexandros Sakkas

Anastasios G. Skrivanos

Panos Kostarakis

Many works have been conducted relevant to rainfall measurements, while the first relevant ones were based on the power loss estimation function from wireless links located back to the early 1940s. It is notable, though, that this innovative idea conduced to many theoretical models correlating the signal attenuation to the rainfall intensity. This type of parameter strongly contributes to the mechanism of frequency attenuation above 10 GHz. Consequently, in the last twenty years, there has been a significant boost to this research topic. Researchers all around the world have worked thoroughly on the issue of estimating rain with the use of earth-to-earth microwave signal attenuation. Nevertheless, the issue remains intriguing and challenging. This paper presents a literature survey, of the last decade, on this challenging issue focusing on measurements from backhaul cellular microwave links and experimental setups. Research challenges and future trends are also presented.

18 June 2018 in EURASIP Journal on Wireless Communications and Networking

Journal Article

Constantinos I. Votis

A Frequency-Selective Reconfigurable Antenna for Wireless Applications in the S and C Bands

Panos Kostarakis

Christos Repapis

Schumann resonance oscillation detection is a complex procedure which requires customized and high-quality measurement systems. The primary objective of this work was to design and implement a stand-alone, portable, and low-cost receiver able to measure as much Schumann resonance harmonics as possible. Design, as well as detailed analysis of the efficient induction coil magnetic antenna and the low-noise amplifying-filtering chain, is presented. The detection system includes two coils back to back, resulting in a total coil length of 60 cm. The filtering and amplification chain exhibits an experimentally measured total passband gain equal to 112 dB at 10 Hz and as low as 2.88 nV/√Hz equivalent input noise. In order to validate the new portable ELF Schumann resonance detection and monitoring system, we took measurements at various spots “relatively” free from man-made electromagnetic pollution. Results have shown very clear Schumann resonance peaks for the first six modes with 10-min acquisition time.

2 November 2023 in Sensors

Journal Article

Alexandros Sakkas

Vasileios Oikonomou

Giorgos Mystridis

Performance of Turbo Coded OFDM Under the Presence of Various Noise Types

This paper presents a compact multifrequency reconfigurable patch antenna in terms of design and fabrication for operating in the S and C bands of the RF spectrum, which are overwhelmed by wireless applications. Reconfiguration is achieved by using a single PIN diode on the ground plane. By varying the voltage applied to the diode, three modes can emerge, exhibiting main resonant frequencies at 2.07, 4.63, and 6.22 GHz. Resonance switching requires a voltage of less than 0.9 V. The antenna fabricated on an FR-4 substrate, with a volume of 70 × 60 × 1.5 mm³, has a radiating patch element of a rectangular ring shape. The proposed low-cost antenna is easily implemented in a typical university lab-based environment. The total bandwidth for the three modes is close to 1 GHz, while the voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR) of the fabricated version of the antenna does not exceed 1.02, and the return loss is well below −40 dB for the three primary resonant frequencies.

25 August 2015 in Wireless Personal Communications

Journal Article

Significant ELF perturbations in the Schumann Resonance band before and during a shallow mid-magnitude seismic activity in the Greek area (Kalpaki)

Panos Kostarakis

1 January 2019 in Journal of Atmospheric and Solar-Terrestrial Physics

Journal Article