A 64-Mb DRAM with meshed power line

A 64-Mb dynamic RAM (DRAM) has been developed with a meshed power line (MPL) and a quasi-distributed sense-amplifier driver (qDSAD) scheme. It realizes high speed, t_RAS=50 ns (typical) at V_cc=3.3 V, and 16-b input/output (I/O). This MPL+qDSAD scheme can reduce sensing delay caused by the metal layer resistance. Furthermore, to suppress crosstalk noise, a V_SS shield peripheral layout scheme has been introduced, which also widens power line widths. This 64-Mb DRAM was fabricated with 0.4-μm CMOS technology using KrF excimer laser lithography. A newly developed memory cell structure, the tunnel-shaped stacked-capacitor cell (TSSC), was adapted to this 64-Mb DRAM     

Diffusion Bonded EDM Electrode with Micro Holes for Jetting Dielectric Liquid

This paper describes improvement of machining characteristics of electrical discharge machining of deep slots using a tool electrode which has micro holes for jetting dielectric liquid over the working surface. The tool electrode was made by the diffusion bonding of two copper plates, over an interface on which micro grooves for jetting the dielectric fluid were formed using electrolyte jet machining. In conventional machining, it is difficult to drill micro holes at the end of a slim electrode and circulate the dielectric fluid from the other end. Hence a solid tool electrode is used and periodically lifted up during machining to flush debris particles out of the discharge gap. Use of the newly developed tool electrode was found to shorten the processing time and improve machining accuracy significantly compared with the conventional solid tool electrode. Since the holes are micro, the outlet shapes are not replicated onto the bottom surface of the slot machined.     

Thermal properties of ethylene ionomers

The annealing effect of ethylene ionomers annealed at various temperatures and for various periods was studied by differential scanning calorimetry. Two endothermic melting peaks were observed for all the ethylene ionomers annealed. The melting peak at the lower temperature, which was assigned to bundlelike crystal owing to a Hoffman-Weeks relationship, shifted to a higher temperature with the annealing temperature and period, indicative of recrystallization. There is physical cross-linking consisting of ionic aggregates, such as multiplets and clusters in ethylene ionomers. The crystallization kinetics of ethylene ionomers was fundamentally similar, but different from that of low-density polyethylene. Crystallization and recrystallization suggested a mobile ethylene chain in both amorphous regions and ionic aggregates even in the presence of cross-linking.     

Gel-size dependence of temperature-induced microphase separation in weakly-charged polymer gels

The gel-size dependence of microphase separation in weakly-charged gels of N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPA) and 1-vinylimidazole (VI) copolymers has been investigated using swelling measurement, small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), and dynamic and static light scattering (DLS/SLS). It is known that weakly-charged polymer gels undergo microphase separation in a poor solvent as a result of competing interactions involving hydrophobic attraction versus electrostatic repulsion. The microphase separation is characterized by a scattering maximum in SANS intensity functions of which Bragg spacing, Λ, is around 20-30 nm. However, when gel size was reduced to the order of Λ, no microphase separation was observed. Instead, a typical scattering of isolated spherical particles was clearly observed. On the basis of the experimental evidence, we conclude that microphase separation has its own wavelength independent of gel size, and nanometer-order gels, i.e., nanogels, do not undergo microphase separation.     

Glass transition behavior of emulsion-polymerized polymer films containing a surface-active agent

The glass transition behavior of emulsion-polymerized poly(methyl methacrylate) and polystyrene films containing sodium laurylsulfate as emulsifier was studied by measurements of dynamic mechanical properties and thermal depolarization current. The film specimens of the emulsion-polymerized polymers were prepared by casting from their benzene solutions. The glass transition temperatures of the emulsion-polymerized films are higher than those of the bulk-polymerized films. The higher glass transition temperature of the emulsion-polymerized films is attributed to the colloidal properties of sodium laurylsulfate in the process of the film formation. The restriction of the molecular chains in the emulsion-polymerized films is attributed to the interaction between the hydrophobic groups of sodium laurylsulfate and the polymer molecules.     

Molecular motion in cured epoxy resin filled with mica flakes

Molecular motion in cured epoxy resin filled with mica flakes was investigated by dynamic mechanical and broad-line nuclear magnetic resonance measurements. Temperature dependences of dynamic modulus and tanδ were determined at 10 Hz for samples containing various amounts of filler. A primary dispersion temperature, T_∞, corresponding to the glass transition, shifts to higher temperature with increasing filler volume fraction V_f. The magnitudes of the slope parameters H_r (representing storage modulus E′ data below T_g) decreased with increasing V_f, but H_g (representing E′ data below T_g) remained nearly constant over the whole loading range studied here. NMR line shapes were observed over the temperature range from room temperature to about 200°C for unfilled and filled samples. Each sample showed a distorted line shape in the transition region where major narrowing occurs. The distorted line shape was decomposed into both broad and narrow components by Gaussian analysis. The temperature range where both components can be obtained becomes broader with increasing filler content. The possibility is set forth that the filler immobilizes the chain segments and causes a different distribution of local mobility around the junction point.     

Magnetovolume effects in manganese nitrides with antiperovskite structure

Magnetostructural correlations in antiperovskite manganese nitrides were investigated systematically for stoichiometric and solid solution Mn₃Cu_1?xA_xN (A = Co, Ni, Zn, Ga, Ge, Rh, Pd, Ag, In, Sn or Sb). This class of nitrides is attracting great attention because of their giant negative thermal expansion, which is achieved by doping Ge or Sn into the A site as a relaxant of the sharp volume contraction on heating (spontaneous volume magnetostriction ω_s) because of the magnetovolume effects. The physical background of large ω_s and mechanism of how the volume contraction becomes gradual with temperature are central concerns for the physics and applications of these nitrides. An entire dataset of thermal expansion, crystal structure and magnetization demonstrates that the cubic triangular antiferromagnetic state is crucial for large ω_s. The intimate relationship between ω_s and the magnetic structure is discussed in terms of geometrical frustration related to the Mn₆N octahedron and magnetic stress concept. The results presented herein also show that ω_s depends on the number of d electrons in the A atom, suggesting the important role of the d orbitals of the A atom. Not all the dopants in the A site, but the elements that disturb the cubic triangular antiferromagnetic state, are effective in broadening the volume change. This fact suggests that instability neighboring the phase boundary is related to the broadening. The relation between the gradual volume change and the local structure anomaly is suggested by recent microprobe studies.     

Recovery of Precious and Base Metals from Waste Printed Circuit Boards Using a Sequential Leaching Procedure

This paper considers the issue of recycling of waste printed circuit boards (WPCBs) containing precious and base metals in appreciable amounts. High-pressure oxidative leaching (HPOL) with dilute sulfuric acid resulted in removal of a significant amount of base metals from a WPCB ash sample obtained by incineration at 800°C. The parameters investigated in the precious metal leaching from WPCB residue after HPOL included the sulfuric acid concentration, thiourea concentration, oxidant concentration, leaching temperature, and leaching time. Recovery of gold, silver, and palladium of 100%, 81%, and 13% from the WPCB residue sample was achieved by thiourea leaching under optimized conditions. The results show that the efficiency of precious metal dissolution from the WPCB sample using thiourea solution depended strongly on the concentration of both thiourea and oxidant.