A wafer level monitoring method for plasma-charging damage usingantenna PMOSFET test structure

A novel monitoring method for plasma-charging damage is proposed. This method performs a quick and accurate evaluation using antenna PMOSFET. It was found that not only hot-carrier (HC) lifetime but transistor parameters such as initial gate current and substrate current were changed according to the degree of plasma-charging damage. However, the present work suggests that monitoring the shift of drain current after a few seconds of HC stress is a more accurate method to indicate plasma-charging damage. The monitoring method using the present test structure is demonstrated to be useful for realizing highly reliable devices     

Determinants of national media attention

This study employed two perspectives to investigate media attention given women congressional candidates. The first perspective is that media attention may be explained by typical and normal media processes, such as focusing on incumbents. The second perspective considers a partisan explanation in which media attention is weighted more to Democratic candidates than Republican candidates. This study employs two established sources, Vanderbilt's Television News Index and Abstract and Information Access's National Newspaper Index , to examine the national media attention of Democratic and Republican women congressional candidates in 1990 and 1992. The investigation determined that media attention is related to whether the candidates are running for the Senate or House, incumbency, and state population. The results also reveal that party is a statistically significant factor associated with media attention. The investigation also determined that ethnic candidates tend to receive slightly less attention from the print media than nonethnic candidates.     

Malignant bone pain: pathophysiology and treatment

2-acetyl aminofluorene (AAF) reacts in acidic conditions with nitrous fume yielding N-nitroso-AAF (N-NO-AAF), as previously described, that exerts more toxic and mutagenic effects than its parental compound. In this study, the effect of sodium nitrite (NaNO2) on the tumorigenicity of AAF in rats fed with AAF and NaNO2 was observed. Wistar rats were divided into five groups: group I served as control; group II were treated with NaNO2 (0.3%); group III was given 0.02% AAF alone; groups IV and V received both AAF and NaNO2 (0.2 and 0.3% respectively) in their diet for 12 weeks. At the end of the experiment, all rats in groups III, IV and V developed early stage phenomena of hepatocellular carcinoma, including hepatomegaly with variable-sized foci and neoplastic nodules. Severe damage was observed in the rats treated with AAF and NaNO2. Feeding of AAF (0.02%) for 3 months elevated the levels of c-Fos, c-Jun and c-Myc proteins in the rat livers. The AAF-induced c-Jun, c-Fos and c-Myc expressions were significantly magnified (P < 0.001) by NaNO2. These data confirmed that the strengthening of AAF-induced hepatocarcinogenesis by NaNO2 should be associated with its enhancing effect on the AAF-induced increases in the expressions of c-Jun, c-Fos and c-Myc.     

Electrical linewidth test structures fabricated in monocrystallinefilms for reference-material applications

The physical widths of reference features incorporated into electrical linewidth test structures patterned in films of monocrystalline silicon have been determined from Kelvin voltage measurements. The films in which the test structures are patterned are electrically insulated from the bulk-silicon substrate by a layer of silicon dioxide provided by SIMOX (Separation by the IMplantation of OXygen) processing. The motivation is to facilitate the development of linewidth reference materials for critical-dimension (CD) metrology-instrument calibration. The selection of the (110) orientation of the starting silicon and the orientation of the structures' features relative to the crystal lattice enable a lattice-plane-selective etch to generate reference-feature properties of rectangular cross section and atomically planar sidewalls. These properties are highly desirable for CD applications in which feature widths are certified with nanometer-level uncertainty for use by a diverse range of CD instruments. End applications include the development and calibration of new generations of CD instruments directed at controlling processes for manufacturing devices having sub-quarter-micrometer features     

A unified diode model for circuit simulation

A new commercially available diode model is described. This unified model is capable of simulating the widest range of diode technologies of any presently available. The emphasis of this paper is on describing the model's extensive features and flexibility in the different domains of operation and is of particular interest in power applications     

Soft commutation in capacitive idling converters

The capacitive idling converters derived from the Cuk, SEPIC, Zeta, and flyback topologies allow soft commutation of power switches without the need for additional circuitry, making it possible to increase the switching frequency while maintaining high efficiency