Use of a TiN cap to attain low sheet resistance for scaledTiSi2 on sub-half-micrometer polysilicon lines

A new process technology has been demonstrated that successfully addresses an urgent challenge in silicide technology scaling: the formation of low-resistivity TiSi₂ on sub-half-micrometer polysilicon lines. The key idea is the use of a TiN cap during the silicide process to minimize contaminants and stress in the film. No complex process steps have been added, and the thermal budget actually has been reduced, allowing for easy integration into standard CMOS technology. The new technology enables low sheet resistance values to be attained for scaled-down TiSi₂ thicknesses on sub-half-micrometer geometries, and thus, is eminently suited for scaling TiSi₂ technology     

Nanoparticle-Mediated Pulmonary Drug Delivery: A Review

Colloidal drug delivery systems have been extensively investigated as drug carriers for the application of different drugs via different routes of administration. Systems, such as solid lipid nanoparticles, polymeric nanoparticles and liposomes, have been investigated for a long time for the treatment of various lung diseases. The pulmonary route, owing to a noninvasive method of drug administration, for both local and systemic delivery of an active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) forms an ideal environment for APIs acting on pulmonary diseases and disorders. Additionally, this route offers many advantages, such as a high surface area with rapid absorption due to high vascularization and circumvention of the first pass effect. Aerosolization or inhalation of colloidal systems is currently being extensively studied and has huge potential for targeted drug delivery in the treatment of various diseases. Furthermore, the surfactant-associated proteins present at the interface enhance the effect of these formulations by decreasing the surface tension and allowing the maximum effect. The most challenging part of developing a colloidal system for nebulization is to maintain the critical physicochemical parameters for successful inhalation. The following review focuses on the current status of different colloidal systems available for the treatment of various lung disorders along with their characterization. Additionally, different in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo cell models developed for the testing of these systems with studies involving cell culture analysis are also discussed.     

Single-wafer integrated semiconductor device processing

The authors present an overview of various single-wafer fabrication techniques for integrated processing of microelectronic devices. Numerous processing modules, sensors, and associated fabrication processes have been developed for advanced semiconductor device manufacturing. The combination of single-wafer processing, cluster tools, sensors, and advanced factory control/computer-integrated manufacturing techniques provides a capability for flexible fast-cycle-time device manufacturing. Specific developments and results are described in the areas of dry/vapor-phase surface cleaning, epitaxy, plasma processing, rapid thermal processing, and in situ sensors. An integrated sub-half micrometer CMOS technology based on these single-wafer fabrication methods including rapid thermal processing is also described     

Review of Identity's architect: A biography of Erik H. Erikson.

Reviews the book, Identity's architect: A biography of Erik H. Erikson by Lawrence J. Friedman (see record 1999-02567-000). The historian Lawrence Friedman's biography of Erik Erikson is useful in understanding some puzzling aspects of Eriksonian psychology. To begin, let us note an important biographical detail revealed by Friedman. As Coles' biography of Erikson had noted, and as many of us had known, Erik and Joan Erikson had three children: Kai, a sociologist; Jon, an artist; and Sue, a psychologist (Coles, 1970, p. 404). Friedman reveals that they also had a fourth child named Neil, who suffered from Down's syndrome, and was given away to institutional care right from his birth. This son, who died at the age of 21, was effectively abandoned by the Eriksons. That a great psychoanalyst who had become famous for effectively treating problem children had failed to give even the minimum parental care to his own mentally challenged son comes as a shock. For boldly revealing even the most negative aspects of his hero, Friedman may be recognized as an honest biographer and careful historian. But he deserves even more credit than that, for, in addition to providing factual details, he provides interpretive analysis showing how these facts helped shape some critical aspects of Erikson's theory of human development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The K-COD relationship for compact tension specimen

In this paper a K-COD (δ) relationship proposed in the case of single edge notched tension (SENT) speciments is applied to the compact tension (CT) specimen. According to this relationship, K-δ is a linear relationship dependent on specimen dimensions and a/W ratio. The effect of specimen width and a/W ratio can be taken into account by plotting K vs δ√a/W instead of K-δ. K vs δ√a/W is an unique relationship independent of the specimen width and a/W ratio. However δ is defined here as the resultant displacement at the crack tip obtained by joining the notch mouth opening displacement to strain reversal point. In the linear elastic and small yielding situations, the strain reversal point position is different from the apparent rotation axis position as obtained by the crack profile extrapolation. This analysis is further validated by comparing the results of this analysis with the published experimental results on CT specimens.     

Investigation of the load sequence effects in fatigue of damaged composite laminate & characterization of fatigue damage

Carbon fiber reinforced composites are widely used today in various areas and specially in aerospace industry for structural applications. This investigation focuses on the effect of different load sequencing and impact damage on the fatigue behaviour of CFC laminates. The specimens made from plain CFC laminates and low energy impact damaged CFC laminates were subjected to a typical flight block loading sequence and the fatigue strength degradation was monitored through stiffness measurement using load displacement data obtained during block loading. Three different stress/strain levels were used in testing. All the tests were performed using a computer controlled 100 kN servo-hydraulic test machine in load mode at room temperature and in lab air atmosphere on undamaged and low energy impact damaged composite laminates. Fatigue tests were performed with a sinusoidal waveform at 3 Hz. It was observed that lower strain levels did not show any significant effect on the fatigue properties in both the type of loading i.e. low to high and in high to low block loading in case of both the undamaged and impact damaged CFC specimens. Significant.reduction in stiffness was seen at higher strain level i.e. 6500me in both the undamaged and impact damaged CFC specimens. The low energy impact damaged specimens showed early failure at higher strain levels compared to undamaged specimens. The specimens were observed to have delaminated in the high stress fatigue cycling. The observed stiffness reduction due to fatigue cycling and the presence of delamination provide a means of macroscopic identification of fatigue strength degradation in composite materials. The energy plots appear useful tool to assess the damage growth.