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Cobalt Precursors For Formation of Cobalt or Cobalt-Containing Material Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of cobalt requires a cobalt precursor that can be easily vaporized, leaving high-purity cobalt on a surface while causing no... Read More Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of cobalt requires a cobalt precursor that can be easily vaporized, leaving high-purity cobalt on a surface while causing no surface damage. This newly developed technology covers the composition of new cobalt precursors and a method for producing high-quality cobalt (or cobalt-containing) films and powders using those precursors. Details Because of the substantial surface damage created by using physical vapor deposition (PVD) to deposit cobalt, researchers have become interested in using chemical vapor deposition (CVD). This requires a cobalt precursor that can be easily vaporized and that will leave high-purity cobalt on a surface while causing no surface damage. New technology developed by researchers at the University of Illinois provides novel organometallic compounds with relatively high vapor pressures and good thermal stability that leave pure cobalt on a surface without requiring hydrogen. The resulting compounds, which can be isolated as volatile liquids or solids, vaporize easily and deposit cobalt effectively under reduced pressure, producing very high purity cobalt films. Applications This innovative new technology can be used by the semiconductor industry for depositing cobalt or cobalt-containing films such as CoSi2 using chemical vapor deposition (CVD). The technology may also be advantageous for important future applications in areas such as magneto-optics and magnetic memory applications. Benefits Easy implementation: This technology has low deposition temperatures, and requires no reducing agent. By-products of the process are recycled, eliminating added safety and health issues. Safer deposition: This method requires no hydrogen. More effective deposition: Precursors are easily vaporized for improved cobalt deposition. This technology achieves high purity of the films deposited below 300 degrees C. Unlike conventional physical deposition methods, this method yields cobalt films on 3-D surfaces with a smooth, dense surface morphology without surface damage. High stability towards oxygen and high thermal stability. Versatility: This method can be used for pure cobalt and for oxides, as well as for nickel and iron triads.
Metal-Assisted Chemical Etching ("MacEtch") of Semiconductors Semiconductor nanostructures have become ubiquitous in consumer electronics, sensing applications, specialized and high-performance materials, and more. These structures... Read More Semiconductor nanostructures have become ubiquitous in consumer electronics, sensing applications, specialized and high-performance materials, and more. These structures are typically produced using slow, expensive, energy-intensive processes such as photolithography and chemical vapor deposition. While some of these processes have become the norm in semiconductor fabrication, the need for increasingly complex devices (and correspondingly longer multistep manufacturing roadmaps drive the need for simpler processes, such as wet chemical etching, to achieve desired semiconductor nanostructures. This suite of technologies from the University of Illinois features a scalable, semicon fab-compatible process called "metal-assisted chemical etching (MacEtch) that allows for unprecedented control of semiconductor form factors via a low-cost, energy-efficient technique. MacEtch is performed in a wet etchig environment and uses metal catalysts to selectively remove portions of semiconductor to create nanowires, pores, or a range of other form factors with various aspect ratios and dimensions. MacEtch has been demonstrated for Si, III-V, II-VI and other types of semiconductor materials. Variations of MacEtch approaches in this portfolio include an integrated superionic solid state stamping (S4) approach and a magnetic field-guided etching process that allows for even more unique form factors. MacEtch resolution is on the nanometer scale, with feature sizes often in the tens to hundreds of nanometer range. The method can be extended to form self-integrated porous low-k dielectric insulators with copper interconnects. Media https://compoundsemiconductor.net/article/121079/Revolutionising_semiconductor_etching Applications 3D nanostructure fabrication will prove useful in the areas of: Batteries, Photovoltaics, Thermoelectrics, Sensors Benefits Powerful hybrid fabrication technique (top-down approach) Fast (30 sec to a few minutes, depending on depth desired) Performed at room temperature Non-lithographical Low-Cost Scalable Efficient Fabricate both linear and annular patterns (can make circular patterns) High aspect ratios (resolution like no other technique, features down to 15nm range)
Visualization of Internet Based Information [VISIT] A method and system for presenting a visual representation of search results relating to information on a computer network. A complex relevance rating scheme for... Read More A method and system for presenting a visual representation of search results relating to information on a computer network. A complex relevance rating scheme for generating a relevance rating for each match of the search results. The display space is defined with a display space relevance profile. A visual representation of the matches is determined and positioned within the display space according to the match relevance rating and the display space relevance profile.
RF Wireless Power Transfer to Chip-Scale Apparatuses An inductive wireless power system is particularly appealing for secured short-range operation, considering its non-contacting and non-radiative nature.... Read More An inductive wireless power system is particularly appealing for secured short-range operation, considering its non-contacting and non-radiative nature. However, one of the major challenges of inductively and wirelessly powering chip-scale apparatuses stems from the miniature size of chip-scale apparatus. The effective range of power transfer or communication is limited by the size of the coil that resides on the implanted chip or the hardware root of trust. For a distance exceeding five diameters of the coils, the power transfer efficacy diminishes to practically nothing even with high Q coils and magnetic resonance enhanced designs. The lab employs a novel approach of treating multi-coil WPT systems as RF filters formed by spatially and weakly coupled resonators, for which the final power transfer efficacy (PTEF) can be determined similarly to the insertion loss of a filter. The effectiveness and accuracy in predicting the performance of the designed WPT systems are tested by micro fabricating the coils on a Si wafer and measuring the power transfer efficacy. The measurement and modeling results reach excellent agreement. As a result, inductive wireless power transfer over a long distance (~5 times the coil diameter) has been achieved with an unprecedented high efficacy (-27 dB).
Spectro-Electrochemical Cell used for Ultrafast Spectroscopy Professor Dana Dlott and Natalia Garcia Rey have designed a spectra-electrochemical cell that is user and environmental friendly. The material used is... Read More Professor Dana Dlott and Natalia Garcia Rey have designed a spectra-electrochemical cell that is user and environmental friendly. The material used is chemically resistant for cleaning and electrochemical experiments. Previous designs presented a complicated assembly with many different parts, large volume, and a liquid gap between the window and the electrode that could not be controlled. Their findings show how important it is to have control of the gap for the ultrafast spectroscopic analysis and for understanding of the electrochemical reactions occurring on the electrolyte-electrode. This design also allows one to move the electrode sample to refresh the solution and repeat the experiment, setting the sample back to the same position with micrometer precision, which is very important in laser experiments and for comparing between results. The design uses commercial electrodes that can be polished, electrochemically cleaned and assembled in the cell. Previous designs use evaporated metallic thin fill on glass, increasing the cost of each experiment, and limitations of the electrodes to study (ie. single crystals). In addition, this design does not require a special sample holder; it can fit a commercially available 2" diameter mirror mount.
Dynamic Devices for Microwave Communications Dr. Eden from the University of IL has developed plasma devices that are instantaneously tuned to change their optical properties. This has applications in the microwave... Read More Dr. Eden from the University of IL has developed plasma devices that are instantaneously tuned to change their optical properties. This has applications in the microwave communications market, which has historically required many individual components that must be mechanically exchanged.
Multiplexed High Energy Lasers Dr. Eden from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has invented a new type of laser capable of creating thousands of near-perfect beams and combining them into... Read More Dr. Eden from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has invented a new type of laser capable of creating thousands of near-perfect beams and combining them into one high energy beam. This new laser has significant applications in manufacturing, defense, and research. 2015-170 Web1.png 2015-170 Web2.png
Improving 100X the sensitivity of room-temperature IR sensors Prof. Wasserman and Prof. Gong from the ECE department at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, have partnered to develop a new sensor for infrared light... Read More Prof. Wasserman and Prof. Gong from the ECE department at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, have partnered to develop a new sensor for infrared light. Combining the specific wavelength absorption of metamaterials and high sensitivity to temperature of laterally vibrating resonators, they have created new IR sensors that specifically detect target wavelengths, are 100X more sensitive than current detectors, and also are compatible to standard CMOS fabrication. These new IR sensors could be used in many different applications ranging from thermal detection, spectroscopy, or gas sensing. Publications: Gong, Songbin, Nai-Kuei Kuo, and Gianluca Piazza. "A 1.75 GHz piezoelectrically-transduced SiC lateral overmoded bulk acoustic-wave resonator." Solid-State Sensors, Actuators and Microsystems Conference (TRANSDUCERS), 2011 16th International. IEEE, 2011. Mason, Joshua, et al. "Strong coupling of molecular and mid-infrared perfect absorber resonances." Photonics Technology Letters, IEEE 24.1 (2012): 31-33. Mason, J. A., S. Smith, and D. Wasserman. "Strong absorption and selective thermal emission from a midinfrared metamaterial." Applied Physics Letters98.24 (2011): 241105 2015-141 Web.png
Terahertz Antenna for High Data Rate Communication Dr. Xiuling Li from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has invented a helical antenna using her self-rolled-up membrane technology that is capable of terahertz... Read More Dr. Xiuling Li from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has invented a helical antenna using her self-rolled-up membrane technology that is capable of terahertz transmission and reception. This has the potential to overcome the "terahertz" gap that plagues communications and can greatly increase data transfer rates. 2016-008 Web.png
Method for Growing a Polarization Free GaN-Based Laser Diode Prof. Bayram from the University of IL has developed a method of depositing (growing) GaN on silicon substrates with complete surface coverage of cubic phase GaN. ... Read More Prof. Bayram from the University of IL has developed a method of depositing (growing) GaN on silicon substrates with complete surface coverage of cubic phase GaN. This technology provides a new method of integrating GaN photonics with silicon electronics. Applications are in light emitting diodes and transistors. Publication: Richard Liu and Can Bayram, "Aspect Ratio Optimization of cubic phase GaN on patterned silicon substrate using phase transition", Appl.Phys. Lett. To be submitted.

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