Realisation and metrological characterisation of thickness standards below 100 nm

High-accuracy film thickness measurements in the range below 100 nm can be made by various complex methods like spectral ellipsometry (SE), scanning force microscopy (SFM), grazing incidence X-ray reflectometry (GIXR), or X-ray fluorescence analysis (XRF). The measurement results achieved with these methods are based on different interactions between the film and the probe. A key question in nanotechnology is how to achieve consistent results on a level of uncertainty below one nanometre with different techniques.Two different types of thickness standards are realised. Metal film standards for X-ray techniques in the thickness range 10 to 50 nm are calibrated by GIXR with monochromatised synchrotron radiation of 8048 eV. The results obtained at four different facilities show excellent agreement. SiO₂ on Si standards for SE and SFM in the thickness range 6 to 1000 nm are calibrated by GIXR with monochromatised synchrotron radiation of 1841 eV and with a metrological SFM. Consistent results within the combined uncertainties are obtained with the two methods. Surfaces and interfaces of both types of standards are additionally investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). PACS 61.10.Kw; 68.55.Jk; 06.20.Fn; 06.60.Mr; 07.79.Lh     

Existence globale pour l'équation de Smoluchowski continue non homogène et comportement asymptotique des solutions

We prove global existence of solutions to the continuous nonhomogeneous Smoluchowski equation for coagulation rates satisfying a more general structure condition than the Galkin–Tupchiev monotony hypothesis considered in (Ph. Laurençot, S. Mischler, Arch. Rational Mech. Anal. 162 (1) (2002) 45–99). The Smoluchowski coagulation rate fulfils this condition as well as some rates which vanish on the diagonal. Under the condition of positivity of the coagulation rate outside of the diagonal we prove that solutions tend to 0 in the large time asymptotic. These results depend on a new estimate from below for the dissipation rate of the L^p-norm, p>1. To cite this article: S. Mischler, M. Rodriguez Ricard, C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris, Ser. I 336 (2003).     

Discrete approximation of integral operators

A method to approximate the eigenvalues of linear operators depending on an unknown distribution is introduced and applied to weighted sums of squared normally distributed random variables. This area of application includes the approximation of the asymptotic null distribution of certain degenerated U- and V-statistics.

     

A Simpler Proof of the Excluded Minor Theorem for Higher Surfaces

We give a simple proof of the fact (which follows from the Robertson–Seymour theory) that a graph which is minimal of genusgcannot contain a subdivision of a large grid. Combining this with the tree-width theorem and the quasi-wellordering of graphs of bounded tree-width in the Robertson–Seymour theory, we obtain a simpler proof of the generalized Kuratowski theorem for each fixed surface. The proof requires no previous knowledge of graph embeddings.     

The effect of dissipation on coherent quantum tunnelling in a double-well system: Two-level model using an adjoint equation approach

We examine the effect of dissipation on coherent quantum tunnelling between the two lowest levels of a double-well system using an adjoint equation approach developed previously in the treatment of quantum-optical problems. Dissipation is modelled by a linear coupling to a bath of harmonic oscillators. The high frequency portion of the bath is adiabatically eliminated using a cumulant expansion technique, which generates frequency renormalisation terms. Making a low temperature assumption, an approximate two-level model is developed in the form of three coupled stochastic differential equations. With a decorrelation approximation, the two-level equations can be solved to yield familiar results. However, the adjoint equation also permits the use of direct stochastic simulation as a means of solution, and simulations are carried out for a range of parameters. A comparison with the decorrelation approximation is made.     

An iterative procedure for differential analysis of gene expression

Microarrays are a popular technology to study genes that are differentially expressed between two conditions. In this Note, we propose an iterative procedure to determine the biggest subset of non-differentially expressed genes. We prove a pseudo Markov relationship that allows practical computations. We obtain explicit expressions for FDR and the level of the proposed test at each step. To cite this article: A. Bar-Hen, S. Robin, C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris, Ser. I 337 (2003).