Numerical Analysis of the Boundary Scattering Effect on Transport Properties in Bi-Sb Nanowires

In this study, we have numerically analyzed the transport properties of Bi-Sb nanowires, taking into account wire boundary scattering. Wire boundary scattering slightly decreased the Seebeck coefficient of Bi-Sb nanowires. This effect is due to the observation that boundary scattering and the mobility ratio of L-point electrons to T-point holes in the nanowires are smaller than those in bulk Bi-Sb because the wire boundary scattering suppresses the mobilities of L-point electrons and heavy holes. The largest Seebeck coefficient for all wire diameters was obtained when the Sb concentration was 5 at.%. The effective mass approached zero near 5 at.% Sb, and the small effective mass led to a large subband shift in each band. Thus, a small effective mass enhances the quantum effect at a fixed wire diameter, even if wire boundary scattering is taken into account.     

Explanation of impact load curve in ball impact test in relation to thermal aging

Solder joints are required to have high impact strength for use in portable electronic products. To make solder joints with high impact strength, qualitative evaluation methods of impact strength are required. Ball impact tests have been widely adopted in evaluating the impact strength of solder joints because of their easy implementation. Impact load curves obtained from ball impact tests are used as an evaluation indicator of impact strength of solder joint. However, a relation between fracture behavior and impact load curve has not yet been clarified, and an explanation of the impact load curve has not yet been provided in detail. In addition to this, detailed study about the relation between IMC layer thickness and impact strength has not been performed, although the IMC layer thickness formed at the interface would significantly affect the impact strength of the solder joint. This study aimed to explain the impact load curve in the ball impact test and to reveal the effect of the IMC layer thickness on the impact strength of the solder joint. Sn–3.0Ag–0.5Cu solder was reflowed on an electroless Ni–P plated Cu substrate (Ni–P), and a ball impact test was then carried out to evaluate the impact strength. This study found that the ball impact test is effective to evaluate the interfacial strength of solder joints. In the impact load curve, it is estimated that the solder bump keeps deforming until the interfacial crack initiates (maximum load), and the interfacial crack initiates after the maximum load and propagates along the interface between the solder and Ni–P. The suitable evaluation of impact strength became possible by measuring the correspondence relation between the deformation distance of the solder bump after fracture and the energy until maximum load and the relation between the area fraction of the residual solder on the fractured pad and the energy after maximum load. And, it is proved that the impact strength decreased with increasing aging time because the growth of the IMC layer remarkably degraded the interfacial strength of the solder joint.     

Electrical characteristics of low temperature-Al0.3Ga0.7As

In this work, we present electrical characterizations of n⁺ GaAs/low temperature (LT)-Al_0.3Ga_0.7As/n⁺ GaAs resistor structures in which the LT layers are grown at nominal substrate temperatures of 250 and 300°C. The resistivity and V_tfl parameters of these LT-Al_0.3Ga_0.7As layers are compared with those of LT-GaAs and Al_0.3Ga_0.7As grown at a normal growth temperature of 720°C. Low-temperature Al_0.3Ga_0.7As layers exhibit resistivities as high as 10¹² ohm-cm, nearly four orders of magnitude higher than that of LT-GaAs, and V_tfl values as high as 45 V, over twice that of LT-GaAs. We also find that the LT-Al_0.3Ga_0.7As materials grown at 250 and 300°C appear to show opposite and contradictory trends with respect to resistivity and V_tfl. We propose that this result can be explained by residual hopping conduction in the 250°C material. Temperature dependent conductivity measurements confirm the presence of a hopping mechanism in LT-Al_0.3Ga_0.7As grown at 250°C and yield activation energies of 0.77 and 0.95 eV for LT-GaAs and LT-Al_0.3Ga_0.7As, respectively.     

Wideband and high-power compressively strained GaInAsP/InPmultiple-quantum-well ridge waveguide lasers emitting at 1.3 μm

Compressively strained 1.3-μm GaInAsP/InP multiple-quantum-well (MQW) ridge waveguide lasers were fabricated. Through optimizing the total well thickness, large bandwidth over 11 GHz was achieved, together with high quantum efficiency of about 0.48 W/A and high power output of 60 mW before rollover. The laser also showed less temperature sensitivity up to an elevated temperature of 85°C     

A model for boron short time annealing after ion implantation

A simulation model is proposed for boron diffusion in silicon. It is especially useful for analyzing the short time annealing process subsequent to ion implantation. This model takes into account nonequilibrium diffusion and reactions of point defects and defect-dopant pairs, considering their charge states, and the dopant inactivation by the introduction of a boron clustering reaction. It is assumed that the boron-interstitial-silicon pair (BI) is a dominant diffusion species that contributes to the total boron diffusion. A primary model parameter, the binding energy of BI, is determined and used to reproduce the equilibrium gaseous source diffusion data. Using a single set of reasonable parameter values, the model covers not only the equilibrium diffusion conditions, from intrinsic, but also the nonequilibrium postimplantation diffusion. Experimental boro distribution profiles can be accurately reproduced. It is shown that the time constant for the BI dissociation reaction rules the transient behavior of boron diffusion enhancement during postimplantation annealing     

Nonlinear Sagnac interferometer switch and its applications

Ultrafast all-optical switching based on the optical Kerr effect in a Sagnac interferometer which consists of a dichroic polarization-maintaining fiber coupler and dispersion-shifted polarization-maintaining fiber loop is reported. This nonlinear Sagnac interferometer switch has the advantage of high stability originating from completely balanced interfering arms. In addition, because dispersion-shifted fibers were used, increases in switching power and switching time were prevented. Moreover, polarization fluctuation was completely suppressed due to the all-polarization maintaining fiber configuration. The required switching power for complete switching was measured to be 1.8 W for a 200-m-long fiber. All-optical time division demultiplexing and logic operations, including inversion and operation, using the nonlinear Sagnac interferometer switch were successfully demonstrated at 5 Gb/s     

Performance limits of coded multilevel DPSK in cellular mobileradio

Performance limits of coded multilevel differential PSK (MDPSK) in multipath Rayleigh fading channels are described. The simple Gaussian metric is assumed for reasons for practicality even though it is not the maximum likelihood. The channel cutoff rate, R₀ of MDPSK is analyzed based on the metric. Account is taken of additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN), cochannel interference, and multipath channel delay spread. For the analysis of the spectrum efficiency of a cellular mobile radio system employing coded MDPSK, its service area is defined as the area in which, with a bit rate of R information bit/symbol (R⩽R₀), reliable communications are possible. Three optimal information bit rates are determined from the channel cutoff rate to minimize the required average signal energy per information bit-to-noise power spectral density ratio (E_b/N₀) to maximize the tolerable r.m.s. delay spread τ_r.m.s. and to maximize the spectrum efficiency     

EXOS-D (AKEBONO) very low frequency plasma wave instruments (VLF)

The Akebono (EXOS-D) satellite has been successfully observing the Earth's magnetosphere since it was launched on February 21, 1989. The objectives of VLF instruments on board the satellite were to investigate the behavior of plasma waves associated with accelerated auroral particles, wave-particle interaction mechanisms, and propagation characteristics of whistler-mode waves in the magnetosphere. The instruments measured not only the dynamic spectra of VLF waves up to 15 kHz by a wideband receiver, but also their absolute field intensities, wave normal vectors, and Poynting vectors. Two electric and three magnetic components with a bandwidth of about 50 Hz up to 12.5 kHz are sent to measure the wave normal vectors and Poynting vectors. The antenna impedance is measured to determine the correct absolute electric field intensities. The instruments have successfully measured the wave spectra, the wave normal vectors. Poynting vectors, the precise wave intensities, the antenna impedance, etc. The present paper describes the unique features of the instruments, especially the Poynting flux analyzers in more detail. Obtained scientific results are also reviewed     

Dirac Cone Spin Polarization of Graphene by Magnetic Insulator Proximity Effect Probed with Outermost Surface Spin Spectroscopy

The effects of the proximity contact with magnetic insulator on the spin‐dependent electronic structure of graphene are explored for the heterostructure of single‐layer graphene (SLG) and yttrium iron garnet Y₃Fe₅O₁₂ (YIG) by means of outermost surface spin spectroscopy using a spin‐polarized metastable He atom beam. In the SLG/YIG heterostructure, the Dirac cone electrons of graphene are found to be negatively spin polarized in parallel to the minority spins of YIG with a large polarization degree, without giving rise to significant changes in the π band structure. Theoretical calculations reveal the electrostatic interfacial interactions providing a strong physical adhesion and the indirect exchange interaction causing the spin polarization of SLG at the interface with YIG. The Hall device of the SLG/YIG heterostructure exhibits a nonlinear Hall resistance attributable to the anomalous Hall effect, implying the extrinsic spin–orbit interactions as another manifestation of the proximity effect.