Transconductance and mobility of Si:B delta MOSFETs

Delta-doped MOSFETs have been fabricated in MBE-grown silicon using for the first time boron as the dopant within the delta layer. Current-voltage characteristics have been measured, and secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) is used to confirm the location of the delta layer and the extent of layer broadening by diffusion during processing. Precise threshold voltages of the devices are difficult to determine since the devices (which all operate in depletion mode) take several volts to switch off. Transconductances of the devices have been measured, and it is shown how analysis of these results can yield estimates of the carrier mobility for transport along the delta layers despite the uncertainty in the threshold voltage. A clear transition is observed in the results which is attributed to the formation of a parasitic surface-channel field-effect transistor, providing conclusive evidence that the devices are conducting along a delta channel for part of the measured range of applied gate biases     

Optical detection of NO3 and NO2 in “pure” HNO3 vapor,the liquid-phase decomposition of HNO3

Flowing and static gas-phase samples of HNO₃ in O₂ and N₂ were analyzed by long-path ultraviolet/visible (UV/VIS) spectroscopy to reveal the presence of both NO₂ and NO₃, the concentrations of which were calculated using differential absorption cross sections. NO₂ is produced predominantly by the heterogeneous decomposition of HNO₃, whereas NO₃ is generated in the gas phase by the thermal decomposition of N₂O₅, a product of the self-disproportionation of liquid HNO₃. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Monoesterification of styrene–maleic anhydride copolymers with alcohols in ethyl benzene: Catalysis and kinetics

A kinetic investigation on the monoesterification reaction of the maleic anhydride residue (MA) in styrene-maleic anhydride copolymers with aliphatic alcohols was carried out in ethyl benzene solution. By comparison to classic catalysts such as tributylamine (TBA) and pyridine, 4-dimethylaminopyridine (4DMAP) is by far the most effective catalyst for this reaction. While both general base and nucleophilic mechanisms contribute to the reaction catalyzed by TBA or pyridine, a nucleophilic mechanism prevails with 4DMAP. This reaction is reversible, and its chemical equilibrium constant decreases significantly with increasing temperature. Both kinetic and thermodynamic results showed that in the presence of 4DMAP, the forward and reverse reactions are second and first order, respectively. The existence of side reactions, reactivity of two styrene-maleic anhydride copolymers of different MA contents as well as two aliphatic alcohols of different lengths are also addressed. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Enhanced electron emission from phosphorus-doped diamond-cladsilicon field emitter arrays

Undoped and phosphorus (P)-doped diamond-clad Si field emitter arrays have been successfully fabricated using microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (MPCVD) technology. The electron emission from the blunt diamond-clad microtips are much higher than those for the pure Si tips with sharp curvature due to a lower work function. Furthermore, the characteristics of emission current against applied voltage for the P-doped diamond-clad tips show superior emission at lower field to the undoped ones. After the examination of Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and electrical characteristics of as-grown diamond, such a significant enhancement of the electron emission from the P-doped diamond-clad tips is attributed to a higher electron conductivity and defect densities     

Room temperature characterization of Hg1-xCdxTe P-on-n heterostructure photodiodes

Measurements of 77K R_oA and 300K reverse bias dynamic impedance (R_dA) products at one volt reverse bias has been carried out to assess the degree of correlation of this figure of merit. Planar P-on-n heterostructures were grown on near lattice-matched CdZnTe substrates with Hg_1-xCd_xTe (0.20< x <0.30) by molecular beam epitaxy. These devices were passivated with CdTe and doped with indium and arsenic as n- and p-type dopants, respectively. Current-voltage characteristic of these devices exhibit thermally generated dark currents at small and modest reverse bias. We have observed that R_oA values of these long wavelength infrared P-on-n heterostructure photodiodes at 77K correlate with room temperature R_dA values. Diode arrays with high room temperature R_dA values at one volt reverse bias also have high R_oA values at 77K. Similarly, low R_dA values at room temperature indicate poor performance at 77K where deviation from diffusion current occurs at reverse bias of 0.2 to 1 volt at room temperature. The results presented here, for a small samples of devices, demonstrate that room temperature measurements of current-voltage characteristics to evaluate Hg_1-xCd_xTe (0.22< x <0.28) diode performance and array uniformity at lower temperatures can be used. This provides an acceptable criteria for further study at lower temperatures.     

Measurement of cathode spot parameters with pulsed laserdiagnostics

The cathode spot formation in air within the first 170 ns was investigated by laser absorption photography and ps-pulse interferometry. The discharge was initiated between electrodes made from Ag or Pd with cathode-anode distance below 300 μm, the arc duration was some milliseconds, and the arc current 5-10 A. Picosecond holographic interferometry and momentary absorption photography yielded spatial-temporal density distributions in the ignition phase of the cathode spot. An absolute electron density value on the order of 4×10²⁶ m^-3 has been found. In contrast to vacuum, the cathode spot plasmas broaden little with increasing distance from the cathode, thus narrow plasma channels are observed in the vicinity of the cathode surface having diameters <20 μm     

A BiCMOS dynamic carry lookahead adder circuit for VLSIimplementation of high-speed arithmetic unit

A BiCMOS dynamic carry lookahead circuit that is free from race problems is presented. A 16 b full-adder test circuit, which has been designed based on a 2 μm BiCMOS technology, shows a more than five times improvement in speed as compared to the CMOS Manchester carry lookahead (MCLA) circuit. The speed advantage of the BiCMOS dynamic carry lookahead circuit is even greater in a 32- or 64-b adder     

Electrical coupling and impulse propagation in anatomically modeledventricular tissue

Computer simulations were used to study the role of resistive couplings on flat-wave action potential propagation through a thin sheet of ventricular tissue. Unlike simulations using continuous or periodic structures, this unique electrical model includes random size cells with random spaced longitudinal and lateral connections to simulate the physiologic structure of the tissue. The resolution of the electrical model is ten microns, thus providing a simulated view at the subcellular level. Flat-wave longitudinal propagation was evaluated with an electrical circuit of over 140,000 circuit elements, modeling a 0.25 mm by 5.0 mm sheet of tissue. An electrical circuit of over 84,000 circuit elements, modeling a 0.5 mm by 1.5 mm sheet was used to study flat-wave transverse propagation. Under normal cellular coupling conditions, at the macrostructure level, electrical conduction through the simulated sheets appeared continuous and directional differences in conduction velocity, action potential amplitude and V˙_max were observed. However, at the subcellular level (10 μm) unequal action potential delays were measured at the longitudinal and lateral gap junctions and irregular wave-shapes were observed in the propagating signal. Furthermore, when the modeled tissue was homogeneously uncoupled at the gap junctions conduction velocities decreased as the action potential delay between modeled cells increased. The variability in the measured action potential was most significant in areas with fewer lateral gap junctions, i.e., lateral gap junctions between fibers were separated by a distance of 100 μm or more