AlN-to-Metal Direct Bonding Process Utilizing Sintering of Ag Nanoparticles Derived from the Reduction of Ag<Subscript>2</Subscript>O

Bonding between AlN and metals conventionally requires a surface modification process at high temperature such as metallization. The AlN-to-metal direct bonding process by sintering of Ag nanoparticles derived from in situ reduction of Ag₂O microparticles mixed with diethylene glycol is examined. Bonding was conducted at 300–500 °C after a preheating process at 100 °C, and the shear strength exceeded 20 MPa for the joint bonded at 500 °C. The role of preheating in the direct bonding of AlN and Ag was identified. The Ag nanoparticles generated during preheating at 100 °C cover the AlN surface, and they are converted into a thin Ag film. The thin film promotes the formation of a bonding layer, owing to the effective adhesion of the sintered Ag to the film, and contributes to the bonding of Ag and AlN. No interfacial reaction layer is observed. The same bonding process can be applied to other ceramics with poor wettability.     

Balanced Secure Scan: Partial Scan Approach for Secret Information Protection

Scan-based Design-for-Testability technique is widely used to enhance the testability. However, it increases the vulnerability to attacks through scan chains for secure chips such as cryptographic circuits with embedded secret keys. This paper proposes a secure scan design method which protects the circuits containing secret information such as cryptographic circuits from scan-based side channel attacks. The proposed method prevents the leakage of secret information by partial scan design based on a balanced structure. We also guarantee the testability of both the design under test and DFT circuitry, and therefore, realize both security and testability. Experiments for RSA circuit shows the effectiveness of the proposed method.     

A 7-ns/850-mW GaAs 4-kb SRAM with little dependence on temperature

A GaAs 1 K×4-kb SRAM designed using a novel circuit technology is described. To reduce the temperature dependence and the scattering of the access time, it was necessary to increase the signal voltage swing and to reduce the leakage current in access transistors of unselected memory cells. In the 4-kb SRAM, source-follower circuits were adopted to increase the voltage swing, and the storage nodes of unselected memory cells were raised by about 0.6 V to reduce the subthreshold leakage current in the access transistors. The 4-kb SRAM was fabricated using 1.0-μm self-aligned MESFETs with buried p-layers beneath the FET regions. A maximum address access time of 7 ns and a power dissipation of 850 mW were obtained for the galloping test pattern at 75°C. Little change in the address access time was observed between 0 and 75°C     

On-chip transformation of bacteria

On-chip transformation of Escherichia coli cells was accomplished for the first time using a microbial array chip. The continuous E. coli transformation procedures were performed on a chip in which the microcompartment was composed of PDMS microfluidic channels and a silicon substrate predeposited with different plasmid DNAs. The PDMS microfluidic device enabled the parallel transformation of E. coli cells with various plasmid DNAs by separating each transformation area. The phenotypic differences reflecting different plasmid DNAs were identified by various approaches such as colorimetry, fluorometry, and electrochemical methods. This microbial array chip could become a versatile tool for many cell biological applications.     

Immunoassay of the MRSA-related toxic protein, leukocidin, with scanning electrochemical microscopy

Scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) was applied to the immunoassay of leukocidin, which is a toxic protein produced by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), with the intention of developing and early diagnostic for MRSA infection. An antibody-chip for leukocidin was prepared by self-assembling of anti-leukocidin on a protein A-coated glass substrate. A sample solution containing leukocidin was spotted onto the antibody-chip, followed by labeling with horseradish peroxidase (HRP) via a sandwich method. The reduction current of the oxidized form of ferrocenylmethanol generated by the HRP reaction was monitored to view SECM images of the spot of captured leukocidin. The amplitude of reduction current depended on the concentrations of sample solutions used for making spots. This SECM-based immunoassay detects as low as 5.25 pg mL(-1) leukocidin.     

An ultrasonic motor driven by the phase-velocity difference between two traveling waves

This paper presents a new ultrasonic motor in which the rotor rotation speed is locked by the phase-velocity difference between the two traveling waves propagating on the stator and the rotor. First, the unique construction to excite two traveling waves both in the stator and the rotor is described. Then, the operation principle of the present motor is revealed by our careful experiments. Dynamics of the two traveling waves are measured by an in-plane laser Doppler vibrometer under various conditions, as well as the motor performances. Our experiments show that the rotation speed of the motor is equal to the phase-velocity difference between the two traveling waves on the contact surfaces of rotor and stator. It is confirmed that the rotor rotates so as to cancel the phase-velocity difference between the traveling vibrations along the circumferences of the rotor and stator. If the load does not exceed the maximum torque that is determined by the vibration amplitude, the rotation speed is subject only to the phase-velocity difference.     

Solvent induced formation of an ordered nanorod array of gold/polymer composite by block copolymer film templating

We report a novel method to fabricate ordered arrays of gold-polymer composite nanorods with the orientation in the vertical direction using block copolymer (BCP) film. The salt precursor is selectively infiltrated within vertically aligned cylindrical domains of the BCP film by immersing the template in a simple aqueous solution of HAuCl(4). Scanning electron microscopy suggests that the salt might be uniformly positioned along the polymeric cylinders. A subsequent vacuum ultraviolet light irradiation simultaneously reduces the HAuCl(4) into spherical gold nanoparticles with mean diameter around 2?nm and removes the matrix of the BCP template to produce metal-polymer composite nanorods. While the solvent is methanol, the salt might be concentrated at the bottom of the BCP film. As a result, a periodic pattern of gold nanoparticles with average diameter around 11?nm is formed where the BCP film is completely etched away. The solvent can effectively tune the spatial distribution of the salt precursor along the polymeric cylinders, which is responsible for the different morphologies of the photochemically fabricated nanostructures.     

Evaluation of fatigue caused to human body by solar exposure by measuring brain function performance

Following direct exposure to sunlight while pursuing leisure activities, many have noticed a strong sense of fatigue in the evening. In this regard, our results of a survey of awareness showed that the development of fatigue from solar exposure of the body was generally recognized. On the other hand, a tool for objective and quantitative determination of mental fatigue has recently been reported. Known as the Advanced Trail Making Test (ATMT), it is a method of evaluating brain function. In the present study, we attempted to determine fatigue development caused by exposure of the human body to solar radiation using ATMT results. For 3 days in the summer season, 15 male subjects (26–41 years old) received exposure to the sun equivalent to 100 kJ cm⁻² of ultraviolet radiation three to four times each day. During the periods of exposure, the subjects wore short-sleeved shirts and short pants, and covered their heads with a towel. Following the 3-day period, they were divided into two groups based on their subjective evaluation of a sense of tiredness, fatigued ( n  = 10) and non-fatigued ( n  = 5). In the fatigued group, a significant increase in the subjective score for fatigue sense was observed in the evening of all 3 days following sun exposure, as well as in the morning of the third day, as compared with those in the non-fatigued group. Further, a significant increase in average ATMT value was also observed in the fatigued group in the evening of the first and second days following sun exposure, as well as in the morning of the third day. These results indicate that ATMT may be a useful evaluation tool for quantitative and objective measurement of mental fatigue caused by exposure to sunlight.     

Formation of Low Aspect Ratio Torus Equilibria by ECH in the LATE Device

By ECH under a steady By field, a closed field equilibrium of a low aspect ratio as low as R/a = 1.4 is spontaneously formed in the LATE device. After the spontaneous formation, the plasma current has increased further up to Ip = 7.2 kA by 2.45 GHz, 30 kW and Ip = 11 kA by 5 GHz, 120 kW, by increasing the microwave power with a slow ramp of By for the equilibrium of the plasma loop at larger currents. Both amount to 12% of the total toroidai coil current. ECH/ECCD at 2nd harmonic resonance of EBW supports the plasma. An outline of the theoretical considerations for the formation process is presented.     

Effect of side grooves on the elastic-plastic stress state of fracture toughness specimens—three-dimensional finite element analysis

Elastic-plastic stress states on double-edge-notched tensile specimens are analyzed by the three-dimensional finite element method. Effect of side grooves on the stress state around the crack tip are discussed on specimens about 30% side-grooved in U, V and slit types comparing with a regular flat specimen. On the flat specimen, the plastic zone develops extensively near the free surface but the dilatant stress there does not increase so much as at middle region. Accordingly, differences of the plastic zone size and the stress through the thickness increase with increasing the load. Although the side groove promotes the severe plastic deformation over limited region near the root of the groove, practically even distributions of the plastic zone and the dilatant stress can be resulted on V-grooved and slitted specimens.