Funding
by Michael Orshan
One of the really frustrating things about the Iraq War is the sad effect of funding Science and Technology. There are so many articles on this phenomenon I’ll spare the tears of “where’s my money?” Sure the war drained what money there was, but maybe the system of science and technology failed to.
Now I’ve seen many universities start programs on entrepreneurship. There are great tech transfers now, even though many of these lose money, they create community togetherness and organization focus. These are all steps in the right direction.
One of the best examples on how to move forward is the city of Phoenix and the University of Arizona. For whatever reason they put a stake in the ground and claimed the biotech was their future. They created T/Gen a facility for biotech research, tech transfer and company building. Then the University created a great biotech facility and began to coordinate their efforts with T/Gen. Now they are building, actually past building, a remarkable cluster in biotech. Now city services, growth, employment, resources are all focused in the same direction. I predict that funding to this will always be there, because the media, politics, planning and everything are focused.
Here is what I want to point out. I believe that economic success occurs when scientists, entrepreneurs, politics and capital work together. This is perfect example. This Phoenix project spanned multiple governor administrations, mayor administrations and so forth. Yet, the political process was smart enough to share in the success and let that success drive their own campaigns from election year to election year.
Personally, I’d like to see public funding, at the University level, be focused on the economic goals of the region. This forces the entire region to decide on that focus, get behind this and drive success forward.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Suits you sir!
In a competitive minefield of electronic components offerings, tailor made solutions can be just what wins the customers vote, Bernd Hantsche discusses
There is little sense in considering the trend of single components within the field of wireless. Particularly in the case of technically demanding chips, the target applications, in other words, the entire circuit system should be analysed in order to obtain information on the future of individual components. Tailor-made solutions therefore are an essential sales advantage for a distributor such as Rutronik. With its Wireless Development Centre and a dedicated wireless line card, RUTRONIK strives to be the consultation and skills interface between the manufacturers and the customers. Wireless experts provide assistance and support in the planning and implementation of wireless applications. Lars Mistander, Manager Wireless Development Centre, describes the task performed by the Team: "We explain our manufacturers' components to our customers so precisely that the customer understands its function and can use them in their applications without wasting time on trial and error." Our Wireless Development Centre supports our customers for instance with troubleshooting in their program codes, in circuit technology, with layout especially for high frequency signals and also with product selection. Continuous new codes and standards challenge distributors just as much as customers and manufacturers. Customised solutions range from the highly integrated GSM module with GPS support and integrated SIM card holder with preinstalled antenna including freely programmable microcontrollers as well as memory and interfaces, through to a chip with minimum wireless functions.
"Particularly small, flexible development companies show us on a daily basis what can be done to improve conservative circuits. Expensive pin-and-socket connectors therefore are simply replaced by cheaper wireless connections and sensitive mechanisms such as a sliding contact and exchanged for long-lasting transceivers," explains Lars Mistander, Manager Wireless Development Centre, based on his own experience. "Innovative ideas get around and we currently see the trend in companies to install wireless systems and to fully re-design old products."
Ultra Low Power is still too high
Many wireless applications are battery-powered. For this reason, power consumption is a decisive criterion for the product manager. Here the distributor is required to have the ability to give advice on the diverse offers made by manufacturers. "In addition to the well-known LowPower and UltraLowPower Infineon chips with 433 and 868MHz range, Nordic Semiconductor products also meet the growing 2.4GHz band requirements," explains Mistander. "Rutronik places as much value on protocol-based wireless technologies: With the IEEE802.15.4 Microchip has developed a high-performance transceiver and already offers ZigBee and the even clearer MiWi; two protocols to choose from."
Infineon, for example, presently has an 868MHz transmitter with an integrated booster especially developed for long battery life. A corresponding PLL synthesizer, a Power Down Mode as well as many other features and only a few external components make this product particularly interesting for remote operation and control.
Nordic Semiconductors covers all ISM bands, however they are increasingly specialising in 2.4GHz technology. Together with Nokia, Nordic has developed a new radio standard with "Wibree" which can be implemented parallel to Bluetooth and is particularly suitable for wireless computer periphery. Among others, an FSK transceiver is already available, with incorporated sensor network protocol, which has considerably raised the bar for low power networking. Dynastream has developed the ANT protocol and Nordic has implemented it using its new chips, resulting in a very interestingly combined product, which can also operate for several years by means of a small battery.
Microchip, on the contrary, has developed the PAN Standard IEEE802.15.4 and is working towards DSSS transmission on only one channel. The transceiver which also operates in the 2.4 GHz band is suitable for ZigBee as well as for a Microchip’s own open source protocol.
Discrete structure does not mean costly acceptance tests
Naturally a wireless application can be implemented without the installation of a spectrum analyser. Rutronik offers for instance a 2.4GHz Vishay module which can be effectively installed in multi-media applications with data rates of up to 8Mbit/s. Rutronik has supplemented its portfolio with Free2Move Bluetooth modules which include all authorisations and releases. A customer can choose from various performance levels: Either choosing a module with integrated antenna or fitting one with an external antenna. The Broadline distributor portfolio also includes special wireless modules for sound streaming. Thus Rutronik offers solutions for discrete structuring of high volume systems as well as development-friendly modules such as those used in small to medium volume systems. A distributor should also be available for advice on which hardware is suitable for which application and is the least expensive in the long run. "Often a company lacks the development know-how for high-frequency wireless chips and, as a result, some electronics developers miscalculate in their planning," says Mistander. "We provide our customers with reference designs and refer them, if necessary, to design and testing companies who have already gained experience in the products implemented. In this way, each design ends up being successful."
RFID – tested anti-pirating system
"Increasingly, companies who previously managed without electronics, are approaching us," says Mistander. "There is a strong trend towards contact-free identification of products." The background for this is mostly the optimisation of logistics or anti-plagiarism methods, which has drastically increased in relevance with product copies originating in the Far East. "This "electronically unfamiliar" clientele constitutes a completely new target group" explains Mistander. "Thanks to our substantial partner network in the areas of HF design, driver programming and RFID production, Rutronik can also assist inexperienced customers in finding solutions with, for example, RFID transponders which offer several memory storage areas." One of these has already been allocated to a specific silicone manufacturer with a particular identification number that cannot be cancelled or manipulated. In this way specific number fields can be allocated to customers and replacement with a pirate copy is made impossible. RFID can also be programmed with individual data, for instance, information such as date of manufacture, version, product status or repair frequency – watertight, heat-resistant, dirt-resistant, long-life and invisible.
Individual and specific
Rutronik's application experts also investigate customer products and make suggestions regarding innovative improvements. In this way they contribute to avoiding misguided development investments. According to Mistander: "Currently we have observed that the greatest uncertainty on behalf of customers lies in wireless networks at sensor and actor level. Queries regarding licences, compatibility as well as product-specific software stacks are common. Many customers intending to implement a ZigBee network suddenly come across more cost-effective alternatives, such as MiWi. Only a detailed network plan will indicate which solution can be recommended. In general, it can be said that the maze of possibilities especially in the wireless sector at the moment is almost unmanageable, particularly since new solutions appear daily and there are no uniform standards. "You really need a good sense of orientation to negotiate the right way. As an initial orientation, we offer our customers our current seminar series "Think Wireless"."
”In one case, a customer wanted to extend his machine with a simple 220V switching logic circuit and use it to send SMS. He asked us for advice on GSM modules. We carefully studied the customer's development project and offered a complete telemetry systems solution directly from our stores," recounts Mistander. "The customer's total expenditure on development was slashed. Instead he only had to configure the telemetry module by SMS and install the circuit board with two screws and four wires into the machine. Each separate development with relay, power supply and a GSM module at such low unit numbers would have been an inappropriate investment.
Wireless bandwidth is endlessly diverse and far from being exhausted: "In a few years digital cameras, for instance, will be fitted with Bluetooth, Wireless-USB, WLAN and GPS and will be automatically fully interchangeable with the other technical equipment," asserts Mistander. A digital camera is already compatible with GSM or GPRS – in the form of the current mobile phones or as special cameras, which are used, for instance, to photograph the weld points on long pipelines to record working procedures, where the co-ordinates of the photographs of individual weld points can be located thanks to the built-in GPS. "Due to the rapidly decreasing GPS prices, this function will in future also be installed in consumer cameras so that you can see which photographs were taken in which places in the world by using Google-Earth", explains Mistander. Rutronik has a paneuropean agreement with Tyco to distribute their GPS-Receiver portfolio. Tyco offers a complete range from low-cost solutions up to newest generation high-end receivers. Both products are very small and compatible to each other. They also offer modules with integrated antennas, modules which support additional gyro-sensors for navigation (AGPS), up to modules with a CAN-bus interface.
There is little sense in considering the trend of single components within the field of wireless. Particularly in the case of technically demanding chips, the target applications, in other words, the entire circuit system should be analysed in order to obtain information on the future of individual components. Tailor-made solutions therefore are an essential sales advantage for a distributor such as Rutronik. With its Wireless Development Centre and a dedicated wireless line card, RUTRONIK strives to be the consultation and skills interface between the manufacturers and the customers. Wireless experts provide assistance and support in the planning and implementation of wireless applications. Lars Mistander, Manager Wireless Development Centre, describes the task performed by the Team: "We explain our manufacturers' components to our customers so precisely that the customer understands its function and can use them in their applications without wasting time on trial and error." Our Wireless Development Centre supports our customers for instance with troubleshooting in their program codes, in circuit technology, with layout especially for high frequency signals and also with product selection. Continuous new codes and standards challenge distributors just as much as customers and manufacturers. Customised solutions range from the highly integrated GSM module with GPS support and integrated SIM card holder with preinstalled antenna including freely programmable microcontrollers as well as memory and interfaces, through to a chip with minimum wireless functions.
"Particularly small, flexible development companies show us on a daily basis what can be done to improve conservative circuits. Expensive pin-and-socket connectors therefore are simply replaced by cheaper wireless connections and sensitive mechanisms such as a sliding contact and exchanged for long-lasting transceivers," explains Lars Mistander, Manager Wireless Development Centre, based on his own experience. "Innovative ideas get around and we currently see the trend in companies to install wireless systems and to fully re-design old products."
Ultra Low Power is still too high
Many wireless applications are battery-powered. For this reason, power consumption is a decisive criterion for the product manager. Here the distributor is required to have the ability to give advice on the diverse offers made by manufacturers. "In addition to the well-known LowPower and UltraLowPower Infineon chips with 433 and 868MHz range, Nordic Semiconductor products also meet the growing 2.4GHz band requirements," explains Mistander. "Rutronik places as much value on protocol-based wireless technologies: With the IEEE802.15.4 Microchip has developed a high-performance transceiver and already offers ZigBee and the even clearer MiWi; two protocols to choose from."
Infineon, for example, presently has an 868MHz transmitter with an integrated booster especially developed for long battery life. A corresponding PLL synthesizer, a Power Down Mode as well as many other features and only a few external components make this product particularly interesting for remote operation and control.
Nordic Semiconductors covers all ISM bands, however they are increasingly specialising in 2.4GHz technology. Together with Nokia, Nordic has developed a new radio standard with "Wibree" which can be implemented parallel to Bluetooth and is particularly suitable for wireless computer periphery. Among others, an FSK transceiver is already available, with incorporated sensor network protocol, which has considerably raised the bar for low power networking. Dynastream has developed the ANT protocol and Nordic has implemented it using its new chips, resulting in a very interestingly combined product, which can also operate for several years by means of a small battery.
Microchip, on the contrary, has developed the PAN Standard IEEE802.15.4 and is working towards DSSS transmission on only one channel. The transceiver which also operates in the 2.4 GHz band is suitable for ZigBee as well as for a Microchip’s own open source protocol.
Discrete structure does not mean costly acceptance tests
Naturally a wireless application can be implemented without the installation of a spectrum analyser. Rutronik offers for instance a 2.4GHz Vishay module which can be effectively installed in multi-media applications with data rates of up to 8Mbit/s. Rutronik has supplemented its portfolio with Free2Move Bluetooth modules which include all authorisations and releases. A customer can choose from various performance levels: Either choosing a module with integrated antenna or fitting one with an external antenna. The Broadline distributor portfolio also includes special wireless modules for sound streaming. Thus Rutronik offers solutions for discrete structuring of high volume systems as well as development-friendly modules such as those used in small to medium volume systems. A distributor should also be available for advice on which hardware is suitable for which application and is the least expensive in the long run. "Often a company lacks the development know-how for high-frequency wireless chips and, as a result, some electronics developers miscalculate in their planning," says Mistander. "We provide our customers with reference designs and refer them, if necessary, to design and testing companies who have already gained experience in the products implemented. In this way, each design ends up being successful."
RFID – tested anti-pirating system
"Increasingly, companies who previously managed without electronics, are approaching us," says Mistander. "There is a strong trend towards contact-free identification of products." The background for this is mostly the optimisation of logistics or anti-plagiarism methods, which has drastically increased in relevance with product copies originating in the Far East. "This "electronically unfamiliar" clientele constitutes a completely new target group" explains Mistander. "Thanks to our substantial partner network in the areas of HF design, driver programming and RFID production, Rutronik can also assist inexperienced customers in finding solutions with, for example, RFID transponders which offer several memory storage areas." One of these has already been allocated to a specific silicone manufacturer with a particular identification number that cannot be cancelled or manipulated. In this way specific number fields can be allocated to customers and replacement with a pirate copy is made impossible. RFID can also be programmed with individual data, for instance, information such as date of manufacture, version, product status or repair frequency – watertight, heat-resistant, dirt-resistant, long-life and invisible.
Individual and specific
Rutronik's application experts also investigate customer products and make suggestions regarding innovative improvements. In this way they contribute to avoiding misguided development investments. According to Mistander: "Currently we have observed that the greatest uncertainty on behalf of customers lies in wireless networks at sensor and actor level. Queries regarding licences, compatibility as well as product-specific software stacks are common. Many customers intending to implement a ZigBee network suddenly come across more cost-effective alternatives, such as MiWi. Only a detailed network plan will indicate which solution can be recommended. In general, it can be said that the maze of possibilities especially in the wireless sector at the moment is almost unmanageable, particularly since new solutions appear daily and there are no uniform standards. "You really need a good sense of orientation to negotiate the right way. As an initial orientation, we offer our customers our current seminar series "Think Wireless"."
”In one case, a customer wanted to extend his machine with a simple 220V switching logic circuit and use it to send SMS. He asked us for advice on GSM modules. We carefully studied the customer's development project and offered a complete telemetry systems solution directly from our stores," recounts Mistander. "The customer's total expenditure on development was slashed. Instead he only had to configure the telemetry module by SMS and install the circuit board with two screws and four wires into the machine. Each separate development with relay, power supply and a GSM module at such low unit numbers would have been an inappropriate investment.
Wireless bandwidth is endlessly diverse and far from being exhausted: "In a few years digital cameras, for instance, will be fitted with Bluetooth, Wireless-USB, WLAN and GPS and will be automatically fully interchangeable with the other technical equipment," asserts Mistander. A digital camera is already compatible with GSM or GPRS – in the form of the current mobile phones or as special cameras, which are used, for instance, to photograph the weld points on long pipelines to record working procedures, where the co-ordinates of the photographs of individual weld points can be located thanks to the built-in GPS. "Due to the rapidly decreasing GPS prices, this function will in future also be installed in consumer cameras so that you can see which photographs were taken in which places in the world by using Google-Earth", explains Mistander. Rutronik has a paneuropean agreement with Tyco to distribute their GPS-Receiver portfolio. Tyco offers a complete range from low-cost solutions up to newest generation high-end receivers. Both products are very small and compatible to each other. They also offer modules with integrated antennas, modules which support additional gyro-sensors for navigation (AGPS), up to modules with a CAN-bus interface.
Nano-generator could power tiny devices
19:00 13 April 2006
NewScientist.com news service
Tom Simonite
A simple "nano-generator" that converts movement into electricity could let nanoscale devices draw power from their surroundings, researchers say.
Currently, nano-devices must use conventional power sources built on a much larger scale. But a nano-generator could, for example, let a tiny medical implant draw power from the movement of a patient's arteries.
The nano-generator, developed by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, US, consists of an array of flexible zinc oxide nanowires. Each is 50 nanometres in diameter and 300 nanometres in length (a nanometre is a billionth of metre). As each wire bends, its crystalline structure builds up electrical charge in response to mechanical stress - an phenomenon known as the piezoelectric effect.
To charge up the nanowires, the researchers gently bent them using the tip of an atomic force microscope. "One side of the nanowire is compressed and the other is stretched," explains Jinhui Song, a member of the research team. "The deformation of the crystal structure on the surface of the wire causes charge to build up. The stretched side becomes positive, and the compressed side negative."
When the tip was in contact with the positive, stretched, part of the wire the charge could not escape. This is because of the electrical properties of the junction between the platinum tip of the microscope, and the semiconducting nanowire. But when the tip moved over to the negative, compressed side of the wire, the charge could escape, making it act like a nanoscopic power source.
Billionths of a wattA single nanowire can only produce around half a picowatt, or one hundred billionths of a watt. But 200 nanowires can be squeezed into a 10 square micron area, to produce 10 picowatts. That is enough to power a nanoscopic device like a nanotube-based gas sensor, the researchers say.
Milo Shaffer, a nanotechnologist at Imperial College London, UK, says the generator could make a useful addition to the growing array of nano-components already created by scientists. But he adds that researchers have yet to work out how to link many of these components together.
"We're assembling lots of small pieces, but a big challenge for the future will be how to build these components into working systems," Shaffer told New Scientist. "In this case, it will be necessary work out how to connect up these wires to the electronic components."
However, Shaffer notes that a recently announced method for embedding electronic transistors within nanowires could be a solution. The technique, revealed in March 2006 by researchers from IBM, the University of Florida and Columbia University in the US, could be used to connect the generator to an electronic circuit, Shaffer says.
Before tacking this issue, however, the Georgia Institute of Technology team are keen to get as much power as possible from their generator. This could involve using lots of nanowires at once or finding a way of keeping contact with the wires for longer while they vibrate. "The current system captures only around 20% of the available mechanical energy," Song says.
Journal reference: Science (vol 312, p 242)
NewScientist.com news service
Tom Simonite
A simple "nano-generator" that converts movement into electricity could let nanoscale devices draw power from their surroundings, researchers say.
Currently, nano-devices must use conventional power sources built on a much larger scale. But a nano-generator could, for example, let a tiny medical implant draw power from the movement of a patient's arteries.
The nano-generator, developed by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, US, consists of an array of flexible zinc oxide nanowires. Each is 50 nanometres in diameter and 300 nanometres in length (a nanometre is a billionth of metre). As each wire bends, its crystalline structure builds up electrical charge in response to mechanical stress - an phenomenon known as the piezoelectric effect.
To charge up the nanowires, the researchers gently bent them using the tip of an atomic force microscope. "One side of the nanowire is compressed and the other is stretched," explains Jinhui Song, a member of the research team. "The deformation of the crystal structure on the surface of the wire causes charge to build up. The stretched side becomes positive, and the compressed side negative."
When the tip was in contact with the positive, stretched, part of the wire the charge could not escape. This is because of the electrical properties of the junction between the platinum tip of the microscope, and the semiconducting nanowire. But when the tip moved over to the negative, compressed side of the wire, the charge could escape, making it act like a nanoscopic power source.
Billionths of a wattA single nanowire can only produce around half a picowatt, or one hundred billionths of a watt. But 200 nanowires can be squeezed into a 10 square micron area, to produce 10 picowatts. That is enough to power a nanoscopic device like a nanotube-based gas sensor, the researchers say.
Milo Shaffer, a nanotechnologist at Imperial College London, UK, says the generator could make a useful addition to the growing array of nano-components already created by scientists. But he adds that researchers have yet to work out how to link many of these components together.
"We're assembling lots of small pieces, but a big challenge for the future will be how to build these components into working systems," Shaffer told New Scientist. "In this case, it will be necessary work out how to connect up these wires to the electronic components."
However, Shaffer notes that a recently announced method for embedding electronic transistors within nanowires could be a solution. The technique, revealed in March 2006 by researchers from IBM, the University of Florida and Columbia University in the US, could be used to connect the generator to an electronic circuit, Shaffer says.
Before tacking this issue, however, the Georgia Institute of Technology team are keen to get as much power as possible from their generator. This could involve using lots of nanowires at once or finding a way of keeping contact with the wires for longer while they vibrate. "The current system captures only around 20% of the available mechanical energy," Song says.
Journal reference: Science (vol 312, p 242)
Get ready for single-pixel cameras
A single-pixel camera? Yes, there is such a thing and it promises to be more useful than it at first might appear. The basic idea behind the new camera is to drastically reduce the amount of information needed to represent an image. This takes place by compressing information in the image as it is digitized, rather than compressing image data after digitization. It involves a single-photon detector whose output is digitized and then transmitted to a digital signal processor. The DSP uses sophisticated algorithms to reassemble the data into a version of the original image.
Researchers at Rice University recently constructed a bench-top setup that demonstrates these principles. Their demo uses a single- photon detector, some lenses, and a digital micromirror chip. The DM chip is a key component. Often used in video projection systems, it has several hundred thousand microscopic mirrors arranged in a rectangular array on its surface. The mirrors can be individually rotated about 10° to an on or off state. A mirror in the on state reflects light in one direction, and elsewhere when off.
In the Rice demo, light from the object of interest is reflected through a lens onto the DM chip. Meanwhile, the DM chip is fed a long series of random numbers which control the orientation of the mirrors on its surface. The result is a series of random orientations for the surface mirrors. Another set of lenses picks up the light reflected from the DM chip and focuses it onto a single-photon photodetector. The analog output of this detector is proportional to the light level.
An a/d converter digitizes each level from the photodetector corresponding to a new random pattern of the DM chip mirrors. The resulting stream of digital numbers gets beamed to a receiver and then to a digital signal processor. The DSP uses knowledge about the random patterns imparted on the DM chip, plus advanced algorithms such as 3D wavelet transformations, to assemble the stream of digital numbers into an image of the original object.
All in all, the single-pixel camera converts a scene that would be captured as one image in a conventional camera into a series of intensity values registered on the single-photon detector. The recording process takes place without any of the components in the setup physically moving (other than the microscopic mirrors on the DM chip). The DSP knows enough about the recording process to reassemble the series into an image of the original scene.
Rice’s single-pixel camera uses principles from an emerging branch of study called compressive sensing. The advantage of the technique is that it needs far less data to digitize an image or a video stream than predicted by the Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem. Nyquist-Shannon dictates that a signal be sampled at a rate of at least twice that of its lowest-frequency content. Otherwise, the sampled version loses information present in the original signal. This idea works fine for situations where there is enough bandwidth to transmit the sampled signal. But it can cause problems for video signals because of the amount of data needed to represent each video frame. So video signals often get compressed before they are transmitted back to processing electronics, where they are in turn decompressed.
Compressive sensing techniques avoid the compress/decompress overhead because the signal is compressed as it is digitized and decompressed when reassembled. The key factor that lets compressive sensing work on images and video is that these kinds of signals are generally what is called sparse data. In scenes being videoed, for example, not much changes from one instant to the next. Mathematically, this lets a small amount of data relative to the overall number of pixels represent successive images.
Rice researchers say compressive sensing tehcniques are in the their infancy, but they hold promise in a number of areas. For example, single-pixel cameras can be super small, so they could conceivably be deployed in large arrays to image expansive areas. Surveillance applications, where scenes typically change little, are another area where single-pixel cameras could provide significant cost savings.
Researchers at Rice University recently constructed a bench-top setup that demonstrates these principles. Their demo uses a single- photon detector, some lenses, and a digital micromirror chip. The DM chip is a key component. Often used in video projection systems, it has several hundred thousand microscopic mirrors arranged in a rectangular array on its surface. The mirrors can be individually rotated about 10° to an on or off state. A mirror in the on state reflects light in one direction, and elsewhere when off.
In the Rice demo, light from the object of interest is reflected through a lens onto the DM chip. Meanwhile, the DM chip is fed a long series of random numbers which control the orientation of the mirrors on its surface. The result is a series of random orientations for the surface mirrors. Another set of lenses picks up the light reflected from the DM chip and focuses it onto a single-photon photodetector. The analog output of this detector is proportional to the light level.
An a/d converter digitizes each level from the photodetector corresponding to a new random pattern of the DM chip mirrors. The resulting stream of digital numbers gets beamed to a receiver and then to a digital signal processor. The DSP uses knowledge about the random patterns imparted on the DM chip, plus advanced algorithms such as 3D wavelet transformations, to assemble the stream of digital numbers into an image of the original object.
All in all, the single-pixel camera converts a scene that would be captured as one image in a conventional camera into a series of intensity values registered on the single-photon detector. The recording process takes place without any of the components in the setup physically moving (other than the microscopic mirrors on the DM chip). The DSP knows enough about the recording process to reassemble the series into an image of the original scene.
Rice’s single-pixel camera uses principles from an emerging branch of study called compressive sensing. The advantage of the technique is that it needs far less data to digitize an image or a video stream than predicted by the Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem. Nyquist-Shannon dictates that a signal be sampled at a rate of at least twice that of its lowest-frequency content. Otherwise, the sampled version loses information present in the original signal. This idea works fine for situations where there is enough bandwidth to transmit the sampled signal. But it can cause problems for video signals because of the amount of data needed to represent each video frame. So video signals often get compressed before they are transmitted back to processing electronics, where they are in turn decompressed.
Compressive sensing techniques avoid the compress/decompress overhead because the signal is compressed as it is digitized and decompressed when reassembled. The key factor that lets compressive sensing work on images and video is that these kinds of signals are generally what is called sparse data. In scenes being videoed, for example, not much changes from one instant to the next. Mathematically, this lets a small amount of data relative to the overall number of pixels represent successive images.
Rice researchers say compressive sensing tehcniques are in the their infancy, but they hold promise in a number of areas. For example, single-pixel cameras can be super small, so they could conceivably be deployed in large arrays to image expansive areas. Surveillance applications, where scenes typically change little, are another area where single-pixel cameras could provide significant cost savings.
Monitoring jetengine bearings, wirelessly
Monitoring jetengine bearings, wirelessly
Researchers at Purdue University working with the U.S. Air Force have developed wireless sensors strong enough to survive inside operating jet engines where temperatures can climb to 572°F. The sensors detect when critical bearings are close to failing, as well as how long before they fail, letting maintenance personnel prevent costly breakdowns. The MEMS sensors are also small enough that they don’t interfere with the bearings. The sensors actually measure temperature, a good indicator of how well bearings are performing and when they can be expected to fail. Conventional bearing monitors track engine-oil temperature, an indirect method which yields less specific data. The sensors do not need batteries, which is a plus because batteries don’t perform well in hot environments. Instead power is supplied remotely through inductive coupling which uses coils of wire to generate current. The sensors send data out using telemetry.
Researchers at Purdue University working with the U.S. Air Force have developed wireless sensors strong enough to survive inside operating jet engines where temperatures can climb to 572°F. The sensors detect when critical bearings are close to failing, as well as how long before they fail, letting maintenance personnel prevent costly breakdowns. The MEMS sensors are also small enough that they don’t interfere with the bearings. The sensors actually measure temperature, a good indicator of how well bearings are performing and when they can be expected to fail. Conventional bearing monitors track engine-oil temperature, an indirect method which yields less specific data. The sensors do not need batteries, which is a plus because batteries don’t perform well in hot environments. Instead power is supplied remotely through inductive coupling which uses coils of wire to generate current. The sensors send data out using telemetry.
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Too Many Science Projects
By Michael Orshan Team Technologies
Eventually manufacturing standards and processes will be figured out. Hopefully, sooner than later. One of the issues, with all science, is how to get the science out of the R&D centers and into the commercial world. We all know that novel sciences are often funded by state or federal government and often part of the universities or public labs. It is amazing the success I’ve seen in labs. Truly amazing. However, how do we get this out of the labs?
Well, surprise, I have no plans of bashing scientists who have no worldly experience. I think that is unfair and often a “the easy way out”. I believe that four groups need to learn how to work together and be forced to work together. These are:
1. Those scientists
2. Entrepreneurs
3. Public Officials
4. Capitalists
I will rub a few scientists the wrong way by saying that you need all four and nobody, nobody, fits more than one category. A scientist can turn into a entrepreneur! BUT, they are no longer a scientist. Holding more than one role is the path to failure. The public officials need to recognize and gain the media attention required for success. The capitalists are needed for funds and executive management leadership.
Has this every been done before? Yes, in the US, there are examples in Austin, TX, San Diego, TX and Atlanta (or really most of), GA. There are others. In my two favorite cases UT at Austin and UC at San Diego led the effort. In fact, there are few efforts, if any, that have been led by anything other than the local university.
I think and have seen some exciting, revolutionary and timely projects being done in universities all over the place. Now is the time to get them out. Now is the time for leadership at the universities to create economic opportunities, in MEMS and other science. They need to include many players and this is difficult, however the rewards last for 50 years or more.
Eventually manufacturing standards and processes will be figured out. Hopefully, sooner than later. One of the issues, with all science, is how to get the science out of the R&D centers and into the commercial world. We all know that novel sciences are often funded by state or federal government and often part of the universities or public labs. It is amazing the success I’ve seen in labs. Truly amazing. However, how do we get this out of the labs?
Well, surprise, I have no plans of bashing scientists who have no worldly experience. I think that is unfair and often a “the easy way out”. I believe that four groups need to learn how to work together and be forced to work together. These are:
1. Those scientists
2. Entrepreneurs
3. Public Officials
4. Capitalists
I will rub a few scientists the wrong way by saying that you need all four and nobody, nobody, fits more than one category. A scientist can turn into a entrepreneur! BUT, they are no longer a scientist. Holding more than one role is the path to failure. The public officials need to recognize and gain the media attention required for success. The capitalists are needed for funds and executive management leadership.
Has this every been done before? Yes, in the US, there are examples in Austin, TX, San Diego, TX and Atlanta (or really most of), GA. There are others. In my two favorite cases UT at Austin and UC at San Diego led the effort. In fact, there are few efforts, if any, that have been led by anything other than the local university.
I think and have seen some exciting, revolutionary and timely projects being done in universities all over the place. Now is the time to get them out. Now is the time for leadership at the universities to create economic opportunities, in MEMS and other science. They need to include many players and this is difficult, however the rewards last for 50 years or more.
IMEC's MEMS programs seek life beyond Moore's Law
IMEC's MEMS programs seek life beyond Moore's Law
By Tom Cheyney, Small Times Senior Contributing Editor
November 12, 2007 -- Belgium's IMEC has become one of the world's leading R&D centers for advanced semiconductor manufacturing, having built a successful business model around active industrial-partner participation, top-flight team members and program development, and judicious government investment. But there's more to the research group than the relentless pursuit of the Moore's Law CMOS scaling path: MEMS and nanotechnology play an increasingly important role as IMEC moves forward.
The Leuven-based organization uses the term "heterogeneous integration" or the catchy "More than Moore" slogan to describe its programs outside of the advanced chipmaking (or "More Moore") arena. A key component of this multifaceted, multiple-application concept is CMORE, which "opens the 200-mm silicon processing facilities for R&D on silicon-technology-based process steps, process modules and complete processes, targeting the integration of additional functionality or performances surpassing those of standard CMOS processes," according to a recent paper by Lou Hermans, IMEC's NEXT department director and strategic business manager for its new silicon technology applications.
Much of CMORE's activity centers around development of process flows for new MEMS device concept and architectures, Hermans told Small Times. "We are mainly focusing on integrated MEMS, which means a combination of CMOS and MEMS technology. Many years ago, we made a choice to start working on silicon germanium as a structural material. Since then we have been continuously developing that technology. We have a number of projects in place where we are using this technology for realizing or testing certain concepts of certain device structures, [such as] micromirror arrays." Other MEMS applications being explored at IMEC include memory devices using cantilever structures (akin to IBM's Millipede technology), accelerometers, resonators, microbolometers, and thermopile-based energy harvesting.
Hermans cited several reasons for choosing silicon germanium. "It doesn't pose any contamination problems for the CMOS process environment. It is ideal for MEMS because of its high Young's modulus (tensile elasticity), high yield strength, absence of creep, no plastic deformation at typical operation temperatures, and insensitivity to fatigue failure."
IMEC employs what Hermans calls "a MEMS last/post-MEMS" or "monolithic integration" approach to MEMS-CMOS processing. "The MEMS structures are fabricated after completion of the CMOS processing on top of the CMOS wafer. The MEMS structures are realized by pure surface or bulk release etching on the completed CMOS wafer or by the deposition of additional structural layers on top of the CMOS circuitry that afterwards will be structured by surface micromachining."
Since the transfer of IMEC's advanced CMOS scaling activities to its 300-mm development fab, there has been much more access to the 200-mm facility for the heterogeneous integration programs, including MEMS, explained Hermans. "This gives us two things: of course, we have more access to the line, but on the other hand, the line is also becoming more stable. In the past, the scaling people always wanted to have the latest lithography tool and the latest deposition tool, in order to drive the scaling.
"Of course, this is not always what you want to have if you're working on applications where you're really making devices, where you're working toward yield, so you would like to work in a more stable environment. Due to the fact that it is not driven by scaling any more, we end up in an environment that is more stable and more suitable for this kind of work."
Some of IMEC's industrial partners have been showing increased interest in the center's MEMS programs. "There's definitely a growing interest, I think, driven by two things," said Hermans. "We are now in a situation that we can better respond to that interest, but it is also driven to some extent by the fact that some of the companies have stopped or are considering stopping their efforts in scaling in house, or are still doing scaling but only in cooperation with a silicon foundry like TSMC or UMC.
"But they are also looking for new products that they can run in their older fabs. So there's an interest for diversification away from pure digital or analog circuits, to circuits with a higher added value, and MEMS is one of the options."
By Tom Cheyney, Small Times Senior Contributing Editor
November 12, 2007 -- Belgium's IMEC has become one of the world's leading R&D centers for advanced semiconductor manufacturing, having built a successful business model around active industrial-partner participation, top-flight team members and program development, and judicious government investment. But there's more to the research group than the relentless pursuit of the Moore's Law CMOS scaling path: MEMS and nanotechnology play an increasingly important role as IMEC moves forward.
The Leuven-based organization uses the term "heterogeneous integration" or the catchy "More than Moore" slogan to describe its programs outside of the advanced chipmaking (or "More Moore") arena. A key component of this multifaceted, multiple-application concept is CMORE, which "opens the 200-mm silicon processing facilities for R&D on silicon-technology-based process steps, process modules and complete processes, targeting the integration of additional functionality or performances surpassing those of standard CMOS processes," according to a recent paper by Lou Hermans, IMEC's NEXT department director and strategic business manager for its new silicon technology applications.
Much of CMORE's activity centers around development of process flows for new MEMS device concept and architectures, Hermans told Small Times. "We are mainly focusing on integrated MEMS, which means a combination of CMOS and MEMS technology. Many years ago, we made a choice to start working on silicon germanium as a structural material. Since then we have been continuously developing that technology. We have a number of projects in place where we are using this technology for realizing or testing certain concepts of certain device structures, [such as] micromirror arrays." Other MEMS applications being explored at IMEC include memory devices using cantilever structures (akin to IBM's Millipede technology), accelerometers, resonators, microbolometers, and thermopile-based energy harvesting.
Hermans cited several reasons for choosing silicon germanium. "It doesn't pose any contamination problems for the CMOS process environment. It is ideal for MEMS because of its high Young's modulus (tensile elasticity), high yield strength, absence of creep, no plastic deformation at typical operation temperatures, and insensitivity to fatigue failure."
IMEC employs what Hermans calls "a MEMS last/post-MEMS" or "monolithic integration" approach to MEMS-CMOS processing. "The MEMS structures are fabricated after completion of the CMOS processing on top of the CMOS wafer. The MEMS structures are realized by pure surface or bulk release etching on the completed CMOS wafer or by the deposition of additional structural layers on top of the CMOS circuitry that afterwards will be structured by surface micromachining."
Since the transfer of IMEC's advanced CMOS scaling activities to its 300-mm development fab, there has been much more access to the 200-mm facility for the heterogeneous integration programs, including MEMS, explained Hermans. "This gives us two things: of course, we have more access to the line, but on the other hand, the line is also becoming more stable. In the past, the scaling people always wanted to have the latest lithography tool and the latest deposition tool, in order to drive the scaling.
"Of course, this is not always what you want to have if you're working on applications where you're really making devices, where you're working toward yield, so you would like to work in a more stable environment. Due to the fact that it is not driven by scaling any more, we end up in an environment that is more stable and more suitable for this kind of work."
Some of IMEC's industrial partners have been showing increased interest in the center's MEMS programs. "There's definitely a growing interest, I think, driven by two things," said Hermans. "We are now in a situation that we can better respond to that interest, but it is also driven to some extent by the fact that some of the companies have stopped or are considering stopping their efforts in scaling in house, or are still doing scaling but only in cooperation with a silicon foundry like TSMC or UMC.
"But they are also looking for new products that they can run in their older fabs. So there's an interest for diversification away from pure digital or analog circuits, to circuits with a higher added value, and MEMS is one of the options."
August Technology Expands Wafer Inspection Applications to Include Emerging MEMS
August Technology Expands Wafer Inspection Applications to Include Emerging MEMS and Photonics Markets; Two New Customers Purchase NSX Series Systems
Business Wire, March 13, 2001
Business Editors & Technology Writers
BLOOMINGTON, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 13, 2001
August Technology Corporation (Nasdaq:AUGT), today announced it has received orders for NSX Series inspection systems from two new U.S.-based customers with applications in the emerging markets of micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) and photonics.
"The NSX Series has proven to be a valuable inspection solution for these emerging segments of the microelectronics industry," stated Mayson Brooks, August Technology's vice president of sales and marketing. "These newly developed photonics and MEMS devices are fabricated on wafers in a process similar to semiconductors, making the NSX an ideal solution for detecting defects and providing information for process enhancement for these customers."
Brooks continued, "We are continuing to see new activity in these markets as our customers anticipate and react to the needs of the consumer and business market. To remain competitive as production times shorten and processes evolve, these companies are using our NSX Series to inspect their products and enhance their ability to serve their customers."
MEMS, also referred to as micro machines, combine electrical circuitry and mechanical systems to perform specific functions and include devices such as optical switches used in networking applications, air bag sensors and pressure sensors. Photonics devices are used to guide, detect and control light sources in communications networking.
Advertisement
The Company's successful new inspection applications provide further proof of opportunity for the NSX Series in revolutionary new markets. In the past several months the Company has also announced sales to the optoelectronics, micro display, data storage and print head markets.
Business Wire, March 13, 2001
Business Editors & Technology Writers
BLOOMINGTON, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 13, 2001
August Technology Corporation (Nasdaq:AUGT), today announced it has received orders for NSX Series inspection systems from two new U.S.-based customers with applications in the emerging markets of micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) and photonics.
"The NSX Series has proven to be a valuable inspection solution for these emerging segments of the microelectronics industry," stated Mayson Brooks, August Technology's vice president of sales and marketing. "These newly developed photonics and MEMS devices are fabricated on wafers in a process similar to semiconductors, making the NSX an ideal solution for detecting defects and providing information for process enhancement for these customers."
Brooks continued, "We are continuing to see new activity in these markets as our customers anticipate and react to the needs of the consumer and business market. To remain competitive as production times shorten and processes evolve, these companies are using our NSX Series to inspect their products and enhance their ability to serve their customers."
MEMS, also referred to as micro machines, combine electrical circuitry and mechanical systems to perform specific functions and include devices such as optical switches used in networking applications, air bag sensors and pressure sensors. Photonics devices are used to guide, detect and control light sources in communications networking.
Advertisement
The Company's successful new inspection applications provide further proof of opportunity for the NSX Series in revolutionary new markets. In the past several months the Company has also announced sales to the optoelectronics, micro display, data storage and print head markets.
Worldwide MEMS Systems market to reach $72 billion by 2011
Worldwide MEMS Systems market to reach $72 billion by 2011, says Yole Developpement and SEMI
Yole Developpement - July 17, 2007
The micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) systems market -- which includes products such as automobile airbag systems, display systems and inkjet cartridges -- totaled $40 billion in 2006, and is expected to top $72 billion by 2011, according to a market research report from SEMI and Yole Developpement. Jean-Christophe Eloy, founder and managing director of Yole Developpement, will present highlights fon emerging MEMS applications and supplier opportunities at SEMICON West on Wednesday, July 18 at 2:00 p.m.
According to the "Global MEMS/Microsystems Markets and Opportunities" report, MEMS devices totaled $5.9 billion in 2006, and are projected to grow to $10.8 billion by 2011, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13 percent. Growth is fueled by increasing use of MEMS in consumer electronics. MEMS devices are defined as die-level components of first-level packaging, and include pressure sensors, accelerometers, gyroscopes, microphones, digital mirror displays, micro fluidic devices, and more.
The materials and equipment used to manufacture MEMS devices topped $1 billion in 2006, with MEMS materials forecasted to grow at CAGR of 13%, while MEMS equipment is forecasted to grow at a CAGR of 9% through 2011. Materials demand is driven by substrates, making up over 70% of the market, packaging coatings and increasing use of chemical mechanical planarization (CMP). While MEMS manufacturing continues to be dominated by used semiconductor equipment, there is a migration to 200 mm lines and select new tools, including etch and bonding for certain MEMS applications.
"MEMS is proving to be a very versatile technology, replacing a number of incumbent technologies in consumer electronics. Traditional MEMS devices are also finding an increasingly broad implementation in consumer applications. Much of this high volume demand is being served by foundries, increasingly on 8-inch wafers," said Lubab Sheet, senior director of Emerging Technologies at SEMI. "However, there are still some manufacturing challenges such as stiction and packaging, both of which create opportunities for equipment and materials suppliers."
About this study
The Yole and SEMI report "Global MEMS/Microsystems Markets and Opportunities" details current and future applications and technology trends for MEMS devices, and provides in depth information and forecasts for the global MEMS materials, equipment, devices and systems markets. This year's report contains new sections on Emerging MEMS Devices (micro fuel cells, micro motors, energy harvesting devices and others) and Anti-stiction, as well as expanded coverage on MEMS-CMOS Integration. Covering MEMS applications, new trends, growing markets and opportunities, the 58-page report contains 57 quality tables/graphs, plus detailed facts and figures based on 57 in-depth interviews conducted with MEMS device manufacturers, equipment and materials suppliers around the world.
The report was created by Yole Developpement in cooperation with and support from SEMI. The report is available for no additional charge to SEMI members. Others can purchase the report directly from Yole Developpement.
SEMI is a global industry association serving companies that provide equipment, materials and services used to manufacture semiconductors, displays, nano-scaled structures, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) and related technologies.
Based in Lyon (France headquarters), Yole Developpement is a market research and business development consulting company, facilitating market access for advanced technology industrial projects.
Yole Developpement - July 17, 2007
The micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) systems market -- which includes products such as automobile airbag systems, display systems and inkjet cartridges -- totaled $40 billion in 2006, and is expected to top $72 billion by 2011, according to a market research report from SEMI and Yole Developpement. Jean-Christophe Eloy, founder and managing director of Yole Developpement, will present highlights fon emerging MEMS applications and supplier opportunities at SEMICON West on Wednesday, July 18 at 2:00 p.m.
According to the "Global MEMS/Microsystems Markets and Opportunities" report, MEMS devices totaled $5.9 billion in 2006, and are projected to grow to $10.8 billion by 2011, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13 percent. Growth is fueled by increasing use of MEMS in consumer electronics. MEMS devices are defined as die-level components of first-level packaging, and include pressure sensors, accelerometers, gyroscopes, microphones, digital mirror displays, micro fluidic devices, and more.
The materials and equipment used to manufacture MEMS devices topped $1 billion in 2006, with MEMS materials forecasted to grow at CAGR of 13%, while MEMS equipment is forecasted to grow at a CAGR of 9% through 2011. Materials demand is driven by substrates, making up over 70% of the market, packaging coatings and increasing use of chemical mechanical planarization (CMP). While MEMS manufacturing continues to be dominated by used semiconductor equipment, there is a migration to 200 mm lines and select new tools, including etch and bonding for certain MEMS applications.
"MEMS is proving to be a very versatile technology, replacing a number of incumbent technologies in consumer electronics. Traditional MEMS devices are also finding an increasingly broad implementation in consumer applications. Much of this high volume demand is being served by foundries, increasingly on 8-inch wafers," said Lubab Sheet, senior director of Emerging Technologies at SEMI. "However, there are still some manufacturing challenges such as stiction and packaging, both of which create opportunities for equipment and materials suppliers."
About this study
The Yole and SEMI report "Global MEMS/Microsystems Markets and Opportunities" details current and future applications and technology trends for MEMS devices, and provides in depth information and forecasts for the global MEMS materials, equipment, devices and systems markets. This year's report contains new sections on Emerging MEMS Devices (micro fuel cells, micro motors, energy harvesting devices and others) and Anti-stiction, as well as expanded coverage on MEMS-CMOS Integration. Covering MEMS applications, new trends, growing markets and opportunities, the 58-page report contains 57 quality tables/graphs, plus detailed facts and figures based on 57 in-depth interviews conducted with MEMS device manufacturers, equipment and materials suppliers around the world.
The report was created by Yole Developpement in cooperation with and support from SEMI. The report is available for no additional charge to SEMI members. Others can purchase the report directly from Yole Developpement.
SEMI is a global industry association serving companies that provide equipment, materials and services used to manufacture semiconductors, displays, nano-scaled structures, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) and related technologies.
Based in Lyon (France headquarters), Yole Developpement is a market research and business development consulting company, facilitating market access for advanced technology industrial projects.
ISE-CCM Nanotechnology Index is down -3.39% Year to Date
ISE-CCM Nanotechnology Index is down -3.39% Year to Date
October 11, 2007, (Emailwire)
The ISE-CCM Nanotechnology Index (ISE: TNY) is down -3.39% year to date, versus 7.50% for the S&P 500, 11.74% for the DJIA, and 10.23% for the Nasdaq.
TNY was co-developed by Cronus Capital Markets and the International Securities Exchange (ISE) in New York. TNY comprises 17 of the leading Nanotechnology companies such as; Cabot Corp. (NYSE: CBT), Headwaters Inc. (NYSE: HW), Symyx Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: SMMX), and FEI COMPANY (NASDAQ: FEIC). TNY is currently trading options in the ISE.
Cronus Capital Markets CEO Michael Soni remarked that “monthly index reports are an important feature of CCM’s Index Support Program, especially for an index like TNY which covers an important aspect of the capital markets and receives significant investor interest.” CCM Index Reports, available at no cost to investors and the media, include index descriptions, objectives, volatility analysis, performance returns, product specifications, component breakdowns and component profiles with news links. The TNY report is available on www.iseoptions.com .
October 11, 2007, (Emailwire)
The ISE-CCM Nanotechnology Index (ISE: TNY) is down -3.39% year to date, versus 7.50% for the S&P 500, 11.74% for the DJIA, and 10.23% for the Nasdaq.
TNY was co-developed by Cronus Capital Markets and the International Securities Exchange (ISE) in New York. TNY comprises 17 of the leading Nanotechnology companies such as; Cabot Corp. (NYSE: CBT), Headwaters Inc. (NYSE: HW), Symyx Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: SMMX), and FEI COMPANY (NASDAQ: FEIC). TNY is currently trading options in the ISE.
Cronus Capital Markets CEO Michael Soni remarked that “monthly index reports are an important feature of CCM’s Index Support Program, especially for an index like TNY which covers an important aspect of the capital markets and receives significant investor interest.” CCM Index Reports, available at no cost to investors and the media, include index descriptions, objectives, volatility analysis, performance returns, product specifications, component breakdowns and component profiles with news links. The TNY report is available on www.iseoptions.com .
Monday, November 12, 2007
MEMS The Next Step
Michael Orshan
Team Technologies
Progress in technology is always moving forward. This progress moving to commercial products is another story. MEMS and miniature technologies are an exciting space with huge promise. However, someone somewhere needs to do some dull thinking to get this into real products.
One area is the lack of development and production standards. How can we get truly versatile products if an assembly needs to be totally changes for each device? Who is the standards group that is working on this and when will they finish? Large companies will only invest in MEMS when the cost to product is worth it. Standards need to implement all the way from R&D to production. I spent many years building telecommunication products. We knew that issue such as heat, management, timing and alarms needed to meet the specifications outlined by both national and international associations. It was not a perfect world. Europe, North America and Asia all have slightly different ways of sending data. However, each follows some basic standards. This has lowered the R&D costs and allow for reasonable production costs with little change.
Another related area is the production cycle. In telecommunications we expected a product could get to the public in about two to three years. The entire final year was dedicated to industry certifications. Some of this does not happen today, due to costs, but the industry has matured and de facto standards are built into most devices. How long does a MEMS product take to build from day one? In needs to get down to a reasonable level.
Even with these issues, the capacity available to produce the MEMS products being created is in great question. Investors need to see the value in promoting standards and lower the production cycles. Then capacity building will be less of a risk. Today, another building new capacity needs to be involved in solving the industry problems. Sometimes working together is difficult, but it must be done. This needs to be done with the help of scientists, entrepreneurs, marketing, operations and the media.
Assuming everything begins to align this next issue should begin to dissipate. However, until that is done, the quality of MEMS devices needs to be addressed? Quality control is difficult when there is such a lack of assembly lines and standards. What do measure quality to? Again, without the quality measurements issue solved, will large companies invest?
MEMS and miniature technologies are the future of all devices. Most will agree to that. When this happens is a larger issue. My guess is as more and more mission critical applications use MEMS technology we will see the need for standards, quality and more funding will show up. More on mission critical applications next week.
Team Technologies
Progress in technology is always moving forward. This progress moving to commercial products is another story. MEMS and miniature technologies are an exciting space with huge promise. However, someone somewhere needs to do some dull thinking to get this into real products.
One area is the lack of development and production standards. How can we get truly versatile products if an assembly needs to be totally changes for each device? Who is the standards group that is working on this and when will they finish? Large companies will only invest in MEMS when the cost to product is worth it. Standards need to implement all the way from R&D to production. I spent many years building telecommunication products. We knew that issue such as heat, management, timing and alarms needed to meet the specifications outlined by both national and international associations. It was not a perfect world. Europe, North America and Asia all have slightly different ways of sending data. However, each follows some basic standards. This has lowered the R&D costs and allow for reasonable production costs with little change.
Another related area is the production cycle. In telecommunications we expected a product could get to the public in about two to three years. The entire final year was dedicated to industry certifications. Some of this does not happen today, due to costs, but the industry has matured and de facto standards are built into most devices. How long does a MEMS product take to build from day one? In needs to get down to a reasonable level.
Even with these issues, the capacity available to produce the MEMS products being created is in great question. Investors need to see the value in promoting standards and lower the production cycles. Then capacity building will be less of a risk. Today, another building new capacity needs to be involved in solving the industry problems. Sometimes working together is difficult, but it must be done. This needs to be done with the help of scientists, entrepreneurs, marketing, operations and the media.
Assuming everything begins to align this next issue should begin to dissipate. However, until that is done, the quality of MEMS devices needs to be addressed? Quality control is difficult when there is such a lack of assembly lines and standards. What do measure quality to? Again, without the quality measurements issue solved, will large companies invest?
MEMS and miniature technologies are the future of all devices. Most will agree to that. When this happens is a larger issue. My guess is as more and more mission critical applications use MEMS technology we will see the need for standards, quality and more funding will show up. More on mission critical applications next week.
CHIP-ON-MEMS- HETEROGENEOUS INTEGRATION OF MEMS AND CIRCUITS
CHIP-ON-MEMS- HETEROGENEOUS INTEGRATION OF MEMS AND CIRCUITS
New verified integration concept
VTI has verified a new heterogeneous integration concept for combining MEMS devices and integrated circuits: chip-on-MEMS or CoM. The concept is based on a combination of VTI's wafer level encapsulated 3D MEMS, wafer level packaging (WLP) technology and chip-on wafer technology. All these elements of CoM have existed for a few years. Combining them in an innovative way solves the tough packaging problem: how to combine cost efficiently MEMS with circuits.
The technology consists of steps of applying a redistribution and isolation layers on the MEMS wafer, dropping 300 micron solder balls, flip-chipping thinned ASICs and finally passivating the gap between the ASIC and MEMS by underfilling. The MEMS-wafer was probed so that only known good sites will be populated. After completion of the process the wafer will be diced and the final test performed when the dies are still on the dicing tape. Sensors will be also calibrated while still on the tape.
The first fully functional MEMS device based on CoM has a foot print of less than 4 mm2 and height 1 mm. The technology is now ready for product design and industrialization.
A new direction for system integration
The flip-chipped CoM is the first step on VTI's heterogeneous integration roadmap. It is a radical step away from the conventional packaging, which relies on integration on a carrier, either a pre-molded housing, a lead frame or a substrate. Eventually CoM will result in smaller size and lower cost than any carrier based packaging. All packaging will be just an extension of the processes of a wafer-fab.
CoM is not the first ever demonstration of wafer level combination of MEMS and circuits. But it solves many issues that are present with the earlier approaches. In CoM the MEMS-device and the ASIC are fully isolated in manufacturing: both can be 100% tested prior to combining. No area is wasted due to size mismatch. No area is wasted for the sealing between MEMS and the circuit.
The first implementation of CoM requires that the MEMS die is somewhat larger than the circuit and the I/O-count will be limited. After the flip-chipped CoM VTI will implement embedded CoM. Very thin dies will be embedded in polymer layers on the MEMS wafer. Interconnections between layers will be made by deposited metal films. Several circuits can be stacked. A real microsystem with MEMS and several circuits is possible. This is the technology for smart MEMS.
New verified integration concept
VTI has verified a new heterogeneous integration concept for combining MEMS devices and integrated circuits: chip-on-MEMS or CoM. The concept is based on a combination of VTI's wafer level encapsulated 3D MEMS, wafer level packaging (WLP) technology and chip-on wafer technology. All these elements of CoM have existed for a few years. Combining them in an innovative way solves the tough packaging problem: how to combine cost efficiently MEMS with circuits.
The technology consists of steps of applying a redistribution and isolation layers on the MEMS wafer, dropping 300 micron solder balls, flip-chipping thinned ASICs and finally passivating the gap between the ASIC and MEMS by underfilling. The MEMS-wafer was probed so that only known good sites will be populated. After completion of the process the wafer will be diced and the final test performed when the dies are still on the dicing tape. Sensors will be also calibrated while still on the tape.
The first fully functional MEMS device based on CoM has a foot print of less than 4 mm2 and height 1 mm. The technology is now ready for product design and industrialization.
A new direction for system integration
The flip-chipped CoM is the first step on VTI's heterogeneous integration roadmap. It is a radical step away from the conventional packaging, which relies on integration on a carrier, either a pre-molded housing, a lead frame or a substrate. Eventually CoM will result in smaller size and lower cost than any carrier based packaging. All packaging will be just an extension of the processes of a wafer-fab.
CoM is not the first ever demonstration of wafer level combination of MEMS and circuits. But it solves many issues that are present with the earlier approaches. In CoM the MEMS-device and the ASIC are fully isolated in manufacturing: both can be 100% tested prior to combining. No area is wasted due to size mismatch. No area is wasted for the sealing between MEMS and the circuit.
The first implementation of CoM requires that the MEMS die is somewhat larger than the circuit and the I/O-count will be limited. After the flip-chipped CoM VTI will implement embedded CoM. Very thin dies will be embedded in polymer layers on the MEMS wafer. Interconnections between layers will be made by deposited metal films. Several circuits can be stacked. A real microsystem with MEMS and several circuits is possible. This is the technology for smart MEMS.
Optical signals interact with MEMS
Optical signals interact with MEMS
R. Colin Johnson
EE Times (11/05/2007 3:40 PM EST)
--> -->PORTLAND, Ore. — Micro- and nanoscale mechanical structures have long been used to sculpt and channel optical signals, from waveguides to resonators, but lately the direction of influence has reversed.
Now optical signals are being used to manipulate these mechanical structures. Recently, researchers at both the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge) and Cornell University (Ithaca, N.Y.) demonstrated new methods of using optical signals to control mechanical structures, at least one group of material scientists proposing to close the feedback loop.
The trend began many years ago with the invention of "optical tweezers" to manipulate living cells without damaging them. Now MIT engineers, professor Matthew Lang and doctoral candidate David Appleyard, have demonstrated next-generation technology: an optical tractor-beam that can manipulate both living cells and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) structures as large as 20 microns. "We've begun applying optics to building structures on chips," said Lang.
Separately, Cornell University professors Michal Lipson and David Erickson, along with their graduate students Bradley Schmidt and Allen Yang, report harnessing the evanescent field surrounding solid-core optical fibers to attract and propel micro- and nano-scale particles through microfluidic devices. Lipson, a pioneering researcher who manages a team of EEs conducting silicon photonics research, collaborated with mechanical engineer Erickson to characterize the velocities that can be achieved for various particle sizes, reporting that speeds of 28 microns per second were achieved for three-micron-diameter polystyrene spheres using about 54 milliwatts of optical power down the fiber.
Back at MIT, in a separate lab, EE professor Erich Ippen teamed with physics professor Marin Soljacic and their graduate students Milos Popovic and Peter Rakich, to unify the influence of optics-on-mechanical with mechanical-on-optics by closing the feedback loop between the two. The researchers have crafted a control theory detailing how feedback from mechanically coupled optical cavities can be used to dynamically tune their resonance.
"We hope to eventually demonstrate working MEMS devices that can perform all-optical functions not possible today, from switching to adaptive dispersion and filter synthesis for applications like optical clock recovery," said Popovic.
The team is now crafting MEMS membranes and cantilevers that can perform signal processing operations presently requiring expensive translation to electrical signals and back to optical, such as resonators that can track communications signals across their entire free spectral range of about 4.5 THz. -->
R. Colin Johnson
EE Times (11/05/2007 3:40 PM EST)
--> -->PORTLAND, Ore. — Micro- and nanoscale mechanical structures have long been used to sculpt and channel optical signals, from waveguides to resonators, but lately the direction of influence has reversed.
Now optical signals are being used to manipulate these mechanical structures. Recently, researchers at both the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge) and Cornell University (Ithaca, N.Y.) demonstrated new methods of using optical signals to control mechanical structures, at least one group of material scientists proposing to close the feedback loop.
The trend began many years ago with the invention of "optical tweezers" to manipulate living cells without damaging them. Now MIT engineers, professor Matthew Lang and doctoral candidate David Appleyard, have demonstrated next-generation technology: an optical tractor-beam that can manipulate both living cells and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) structures as large as 20 microns. "We've begun applying optics to building structures on chips," said Lang.
Separately, Cornell University professors Michal Lipson and David Erickson, along with their graduate students Bradley Schmidt and Allen Yang, report harnessing the evanescent field surrounding solid-core optical fibers to attract and propel micro- and nano-scale particles through microfluidic devices. Lipson, a pioneering researcher who manages a team of EEs conducting silicon photonics research, collaborated with mechanical engineer Erickson to characterize the velocities that can be achieved for various particle sizes, reporting that speeds of 28 microns per second were achieved for three-micron-diameter polystyrene spheres using about 54 milliwatts of optical power down the fiber.
Back at MIT, in a separate lab, EE professor Erich Ippen teamed with physics professor Marin Soljacic and their graduate students Milos Popovic and Peter Rakich, to unify the influence of optics-on-mechanical with mechanical-on-optics by closing the feedback loop between the two. The researchers have crafted a control theory detailing how feedback from mechanically coupled optical cavities can be used to dynamically tune their resonance.
"We hope to eventually demonstrate working MEMS devices that can perform all-optical functions not possible today, from switching to adaptive dispersion and filter synthesis for applications like optical clock recovery," said Popovic.
The team is now crafting MEMS membranes and cantilevers that can perform signal processing operations presently requiring expensive translation to electrical signals and back to optical, such as resonators that can track communications signals across their entire free spectral range of about 4.5 THz. -->
Electronics cooling, Power storage to Replace Batteries
Irvine Sensors'Phase 2 SBIR Awards Total $3.2 MillionPR Newswire (November 8, 2007)
COSTA MESA, Calif., Nov 08, 2007 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Irvine Sensors Corporation (Nasdaq: IRSN) announced today that it has received four Phase 2 Small Business Innovation Research ("SBIR") awards over the past 5 months aggregating $3.2 million in contract value. These contracts were won in competition with other Phase 1 SBIR contractors for innovations in electronics cooling, power storage to replace batteries, ultra-miniature night vision viewers, and electronics anti-tamper devices. All of the awards are funded by various government units with identified defense applications for the respective technologies. However, one of the selection criteria for Phase 2 SBIR awards is the ability to also find commercial markets for the developed technology, and consistent with that aim, Irvine Sensors has identified and plans to pursue near-term commercialization opportunities.
Two of the recent SBIR Phase 2 awards involve development of Micro Electro-Mechanical Systems {"MEMS") devices. The most recent of these SBIR MEMS awards, received in October, addresses the key issue of heat dissipation, which has become an increasingly severe problem for both commercial and defense electronics as electronics chips have become faster and more powerful. Irvine Sensors has conceived and plans to develop a proprietary MEMS-based micro pump to drive cooling fluid through micro channels in the electronic devices at low pressure as opposed to high pressures associated with present solutions, which require correspondingly higher power.
A second MEMS SBIR Phase 2 award involves the development of a proprietary Irvine Sensors' answer to double A battery replacement, involving a novel, miniature combustion engine that uses butane or other easily available combustible liquids expected to provide higher energy for longer periods of time than lithium-ion technology. This technology is anticipated to have far- reaching applications if successfully developed and produced in volume.
A third recent SBIR Phase 2 award involves an extension of Irvine Sensors' proprietary infrared camera technology to further levels of miniaturization. The specific developmental goal for that contract is to exploit Irvine Sensors' high density 3D electronics technology and expertise to provide a several-fold size and weight reduction for night vision goggles and other viewers, which should make them much more comfortable to wear for both defense applications and such potential commercial applications as industrial security and fire fighting.
The fourth recent SBIR Phase 2 award was the one announced in August 2007 involving the development of a system to protect high value and sensitive electronics and software from piracy and reverse engineering. Keeping adversaries and competitors from reverse engineering information from electronics devices is rapidly becoming an industry-wide hot button for both military and commercial users.
All but the first of these SBIR contracts were included in the year-ending backlog announced on October 22, 2007.
Irvine Sensors Corporation (http://www.irvine-sensors.com), headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, is a vision systems company engaged in the development and sale of miniaturized infrared and electro-optical cameras, image processors and stacked chip assemblies, the manufacture and sale of optical systems and equipment for military applications through its Optex subsidiary and research and development related to high density electronics, miniaturized sensors, optical interconnection technology, high speed network security, image processing and low-power analog and mixed-signal integrated circuits for diverse systems applications.
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This message may contain forward-looking statements based on our current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management's beliefs, and certain assumptions made by us. Words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "believes," "thinks", "seeks," "estimates," "may," "will" and variations of these words or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements include, but are not limited to, our expectations regarding our ability to successfully meet the developmental objectives of our recent SBIR Phase 2 awards and achieve broad commercialization of such technologies. Such statements speak only as of the date hereof and are subject to change. We undertake no obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statements for any reason. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, our actual results could differ materially and adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statements as a result of various factors.
Important factors that may cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, our ability to attract commercial sponsorship for any or all of the technologies we are developing under our SBIR Phase 2 awards; the impact of our working capital limitations on our ability to achieve the goals of our SBIR Phase 2 contracts: our ability to specify, develop, complete, introduce, market and manufacture new technologies and products in a cost-effective and timely manner; evolving technology and industry standards, and our ability to achieve broad market acceptance of products incorporating our technologies; adapt to and integrate any necessary changes in our planned development and commercialization activities to comply with such new technologies or standards; the availability and pricing of competing technologies and products and other competitive pressures; the effects of international conflicts, natural disasters, public health emergencies and other events beyond our control; and the general economic downturn, and potential impact of other economic and political conditions and specific conditions that may impact our operations. Further information on Irvine Sensors Corporation, including additional risk factors that may affect our forward looking statements, is contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10- Q, our Current Reports on Form 8-K and our other SEC filings that are available through the SEC's website (http://www.sec.gov).
SOURCE Irvine Sensors Corporation
URL: http://www.irvine-sensors.com www.prnewswire.com
Copyright (C) 2007 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
COSTA MESA, Calif., Nov 08, 2007 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Irvine Sensors Corporation (Nasdaq: IRSN) announced today that it has received four Phase 2 Small Business Innovation Research ("SBIR") awards over the past 5 months aggregating $3.2 million in contract value. These contracts were won in competition with other Phase 1 SBIR contractors for innovations in electronics cooling, power storage to replace batteries, ultra-miniature night vision viewers, and electronics anti-tamper devices. All of the awards are funded by various government units with identified defense applications for the respective technologies. However, one of the selection criteria for Phase 2 SBIR awards is the ability to also find commercial markets for the developed technology, and consistent with that aim, Irvine Sensors has identified and plans to pursue near-term commercialization opportunities.
Two of the recent SBIR Phase 2 awards involve development of Micro Electro-Mechanical Systems {"MEMS") devices. The most recent of these SBIR MEMS awards, received in October, addresses the key issue of heat dissipation, which has become an increasingly severe problem for both commercial and defense electronics as electronics chips have become faster and more powerful. Irvine Sensors has conceived and plans to develop a proprietary MEMS-based micro pump to drive cooling fluid through micro channels in the electronic devices at low pressure as opposed to high pressures associated with present solutions, which require correspondingly higher power.
A second MEMS SBIR Phase 2 award involves the development of a proprietary Irvine Sensors' answer to double A battery replacement, involving a novel, miniature combustion engine that uses butane or other easily available combustible liquids expected to provide higher energy for longer periods of time than lithium-ion technology. This technology is anticipated to have far- reaching applications if successfully developed and produced in volume.
A third recent SBIR Phase 2 award involves an extension of Irvine Sensors' proprietary infrared camera technology to further levels of miniaturization. The specific developmental goal for that contract is to exploit Irvine Sensors' high density 3D electronics technology and expertise to provide a several-fold size and weight reduction for night vision goggles and other viewers, which should make them much more comfortable to wear for both defense applications and such potential commercial applications as industrial security and fire fighting.
The fourth recent SBIR Phase 2 award was the one announced in August 2007 involving the development of a system to protect high value and sensitive electronics and software from piracy and reverse engineering. Keeping adversaries and competitors from reverse engineering information from electronics devices is rapidly becoming an industry-wide hot button for both military and commercial users.
All but the first of these SBIR contracts were included in the year-ending backlog announced on October 22, 2007.
Irvine Sensors Corporation (http://www.irvine-sensors.com), headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, is a vision systems company engaged in the development and sale of miniaturized infrared and electro-optical cameras, image processors and stacked chip assemblies, the manufacture and sale of optical systems and equipment for military applications through its Optex subsidiary and research and development related to high density electronics, miniaturized sensors, optical interconnection technology, high speed network security, image processing and low-power analog and mixed-signal integrated circuits for diverse systems applications.
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This message may contain forward-looking statements based on our current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management's beliefs, and certain assumptions made by us. Words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "believes," "thinks", "seeks," "estimates," "may," "will" and variations of these words or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements include, but are not limited to, our expectations regarding our ability to successfully meet the developmental objectives of our recent SBIR Phase 2 awards and achieve broad commercialization of such technologies. Such statements speak only as of the date hereof and are subject to change. We undertake no obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statements for any reason. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, our actual results could differ materially and adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statements as a result of various factors.
Important factors that may cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, our ability to attract commercial sponsorship for any or all of the technologies we are developing under our SBIR Phase 2 awards; the impact of our working capital limitations on our ability to achieve the goals of our SBIR Phase 2 contracts: our ability to specify, develop, complete, introduce, market and manufacture new technologies and products in a cost-effective and timely manner; evolving technology and industry standards, and our ability to achieve broad market acceptance of products incorporating our technologies; adapt to and integrate any necessary changes in our planned development and commercialization activities to comply with such new technologies or standards; the availability and pricing of competing technologies and products and other competitive pressures; the effects of international conflicts, natural disasters, public health emergencies and other events beyond our control; and the general economic downturn, and potential impact of other economic and political conditions and specific conditions that may impact our operations. Further information on Irvine Sensors Corporation, including additional risk factors that may affect our forward looking statements, is contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10- Q, our Current Reports on Form 8-K and our other SEC filings that are available through the SEC's website (http://www.sec.gov).
SOURCE Irvine Sensors Corporation
URL: http://www.irvine-sensors.com www.prnewswire.com
Copyright (C) 2007 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Big Visions with Tiny Components
By Michael Orshan
TeaM Technologies
We are starting this blog with a few intentions. First we want to promote ourselves as thinkers in the space of tiny components for the automotive, telecommunications and consumer electronics industry. To do this, on a weekly basis, we will post significant articles regarding our focus areas. More significantly, we are creating the TT Index of public companies in this space. We believe we need to measure the success of tiny components and we want to take a leadership position in this regard.
TeaM Technologies is an engineering firm located in El Paso, TX and Juarez, MX. Our leaders have been involved in MEMS components, mainly in the automotive business, since the beginning of MEMS itself. We would like to hear from you, to discuss issues, to add content to this site and most important to us, discuss new opportunities.
TeaM Technologies
We are starting this blog with a few intentions. First we want to promote ourselves as thinkers in the space of tiny components for the automotive, telecommunications and consumer electronics industry. To do this, on a weekly basis, we will post significant articles regarding our focus areas. More significantly, we are creating the TT Index of public companies in this space. We believe we need to measure the success of tiny components and we want to take a leadership position in this regard.
TeaM Technologies is an engineering firm located in El Paso, TX and Juarez, MX. Our leaders have been involved in MEMS components, mainly in the automotive business, since the beginning of MEMS itself. We would like to hear from you, to discuss issues, to add content to this site and most important to us, discuss new opportunities.
ASICs added to MEMS wafers
R. Colin Johnson
EE Times (11/01/2007 12:14 PM EDT)
PORTLAND, Ore. — Microelectromechanical system (MEMS) chips are currently joined to separate CMOS ASICs after separate wafers are diced. A new technique called "chip-on-MEMS" bonds ASIC dice atop an entire MEMS wafer before dicing, according to developer VTI Technologies Oy.
"Chip-on-MEMS is a radical step away from conventional packaging," said Heikki Kuisma, vice president of research at VTI, (Vantaa, Finland), a manufacturer of MEMS accelerometers and pressure sensors for the automotive market. "Now, even the final testing and calibration are wafer-scale processes."
Besides the benefit of wafer-scale calibration and testing, VTI Technologies also claims that Chip-on-MEMS will enable them to make much thinner chips. VTI has demonstrated a combined MEMS-ASIC measuring 4 mm2 but just 1-mm thick. Typical MEMS chips bonded to ASICs are between 2- and 5-mm thick. Eventually, VTI claims it will be able to produce chips-on-MEMS dice one-third the thickness of today's thinnest dice.
The chip-on-MEMS process works by first testing the MEMS wafer, then placing extra-thin ASIC dice face down on the MEMS wafer in known-good locations. Then 300-micron solder balls are dropped on the ASIC, which was flip-chipped with solder bumps.
Finally, an underfill isolates the ASIC from the MEMS for passivation and increased reliability. Final testing can then be performed at the wafer scale before dicing the combined chip-on-MEMS device.
Next, VTI said it is looking to stack multiple ASICs atop its MEMS wafers for producing 3D stacks of very complex circuitry. VTI said it hopes its technique will enable stacks of multiple 20-micron-thick ASICs to be integrated atop MEMS wafers at a much lower cost than competing 3D techniques. The company is also seeking to advance to technique to allow high-volume manufacturing.
EE Times (11/01/2007 12:14 PM EDT)
PORTLAND, Ore. — Microelectromechanical system (MEMS) chips are currently joined to separate CMOS ASICs after separate wafers are diced. A new technique called "chip-on-MEMS" bonds ASIC dice atop an entire MEMS wafer before dicing, according to developer VTI Technologies Oy.
"Chip-on-MEMS is a radical step away from conventional packaging," said Heikki Kuisma, vice president of research at VTI, (Vantaa, Finland), a manufacturer of MEMS accelerometers and pressure sensors for the automotive market. "Now, even the final testing and calibration are wafer-scale processes."
Besides the benefit of wafer-scale calibration and testing, VTI Technologies also claims that Chip-on-MEMS will enable them to make much thinner chips. VTI has demonstrated a combined MEMS-ASIC measuring 4 mm2 but just 1-mm thick. Typical MEMS chips bonded to ASICs are between 2- and 5-mm thick. Eventually, VTI claims it will be able to produce chips-on-MEMS dice one-third the thickness of today's thinnest dice.
The chip-on-MEMS process works by first testing the MEMS wafer, then placing extra-thin ASIC dice face down on the MEMS wafer in known-good locations. Then 300-micron solder balls are dropped on the ASIC, which was flip-chipped with solder bumps.
Finally, an underfill isolates the ASIC from the MEMS for passivation and increased reliability. Final testing can then be performed at the wafer scale before dicing the combined chip-on-MEMS device.
Next, VTI said it is looking to stack multiple ASICs atop its MEMS wafers for producing 3D stacks of very complex circuitry. VTI said it hopes its technique will enable stacks of multiple 20-micron-thick ASICs to be integrated atop MEMS wafers at a much lower cost than competing 3D techniques. The company is also seeking to advance to technique to allow high-volume manufacturing.
The World's Smallest Radio
A tiny radio made out of a single carbon nanotube could ultimately find use in biological and environmental sensors.
By Prachi Patel-Predd
Researchers have fashioned the world's tiniest radio out of a carbon nanotube. The nanotube, placed between two electrodes, combines the roles of all the major electrical components in a radio, including the tuner and amplifier. It can tune in to a radio signal and play the audio through an external speaker.
While the practical application of the radio is uncertain, it could be used in biological and environmental sensors. Researchers are now developing microelectromechanical (MEMS) sensors to measure blood sugar levels or cancer markers in the body. Instead of researchers using a stamp-size radio-frequency identification tag, a nanotube radio could be packaged with the MEMS-based sensor and injected directly into the bloodstream, says Alex Zettl, an experimental physicist at the University of California, Berkeley, who is leading the development of the nanotube radio. Once in the body, the radio could provide wireless communication between the tiny biological sensors and an external monitor. To do that, however, the nanotube radio would have to work as a transmitter. Right now, it is only configured as a receiver, but Zettl says that "the same physics would work as a transmitter."
The nanotube radio works differently than a conventional radio does. Conventional radios have four main functional parts: antenna, tuner, amplifier, and demodulator. Radio waves falling on a radio antenna create electric currents at different frequencies. When someone selects a radio station, the tuner filters out all but one of the frequencies. Transistors amplify the signal, while a demodulator, typically a rectifier or a diode, separates the data--the music or other audio--that has been encoded on a "carrier" electromagnetic wave.
Zettl's team used one carbon nanotube for all these functions. Because of their unique electrical properties, carbon nanotubes have been previously used to make electronic components such as diodes, transistors, and rectifiers. "It was a revelation that all of this could be built into the same [nanotube]," Zettl says.
The nanotube is grown sticking out from a tungsten surface, which acts as a negative electrode. The tip of the carbon nanotube is also negatively charged. A vacuum separates the nanotube from a positive copper electrode. The researchers use an external battery to apply a voltage between the two electrodes. Electrons jump out from the negative nanotube tip to the positive electrode, creating what is called a field emission current.
Zettl explains that the "nanotube does not act as an antenna in the conventional sense." That is, instead of picking up electromagnetic waves electrically, it picks them up mechanically. This happens because of the nanotube's natural resonance frequency. As soon as it encounters radio waves that match the frequency, the nanotube starts vibrating in step with the waves, effectively tuning in only to that radio signal. The nanotube's vibrations change the field emission current, and the mechanical vibrations are converted into an electrical signal. An external battery powers the field emission current and amplifies the radio signal. The field emission is naturally asymmetrical--it allows current to flow only in one direction, just like the diodes and rectifiers used in demodulators. So the nanotube also acts as a demodulator and detects the music encoded onto the carrier wave.
To tune to a different radio station, the researchers change the resonance frequency of the nanotube. They do this by changing the voltage applied across the electrodes. "It's like tuning a guitar string," Zettl says. "The electric field pulls on the nanotube." With the same nanotube, the researchers can cover the entire FM radio band.
Cees Dekker, a nanotube researcher at the Delft University of Technology, in the Netherlands, calls the new radio "an appealing demonstration that very simple devices can be used for everyday [tools]." Whether or not the device is used for sensors remains to be seen, he says, but for now, the simple demonstration is a good start.
By Prachi Patel-Predd
Researchers have fashioned the world's tiniest radio out of a carbon nanotube. The nanotube, placed between two electrodes, combines the roles of all the major electrical components in a radio, including the tuner and amplifier. It can tune in to a radio signal and play the audio through an external speaker.
While the practical application of the radio is uncertain, it could be used in biological and environmental sensors. Researchers are now developing microelectromechanical (MEMS) sensors to measure blood sugar levels or cancer markers in the body. Instead of researchers using a stamp-size radio-frequency identification tag, a nanotube radio could be packaged with the MEMS-based sensor and injected directly into the bloodstream, says Alex Zettl, an experimental physicist at the University of California, Berkeley, who is leading the development of the nanotube radio. Once in the body, the radio could provide wireless communication between the tiny biological sensors and an external monitor. To do that, however, the nanotube radio would have to work as a transmitter. Right now, it is only configured as a receiver, but Zettl says that "the same physics would work as a transmitter."
The nanotube radio works differently than a conventional radio does. Conventional radios have four main functional parts: antenna, tuner, amplifier, and demodulator. Radio waves falling on a radio antenna create electric currents at different frequencies. When someone selects a radio station, the tuner filters out all but one of the frequencies. Transistors amplify the signal, while a demodulator, typically a rectifier or a diode, separates the data--the music or other audio--that has been encoded on a "carrier" electromagnetic wave.
Zettl's team used one carbon nanotube for all these functions. Because of their unique electrical properties, carbon nanotubes have been previously used to make electronic components such as diodes, transistors, and rectifiers. "It was a revelation that all of this could be built into the same [nanotube]," Zettl says.
The nanotube is grown sticking out from a tungsten surface, which acts as a negative electrode. The tip of the carbon nanotube is also negatively charged. A vacuum separates the nanotube from a positive copper electrode. The researchers use an external battery to apply a voltage between the two electrodes. Electrons jump out from the negative nanotube tip to the positive electrode, creating what is called a field emission current.
Zettl explains that the "nanotube does not act as an antenna in the conventional sense." That is, instead of picking up electromagnetic waves electrically, it picks them up mechanically. This happens because of the nanotube's natural resonance frequency. As soon as it encounters radio waves that match the frequency, the nanotube starts vibrating in step with the waves, effectively tuning in only to that radio signal. The nanotube's vibrations change the field emission current, and the mechanical vibrations are converted into an electrical signal. An external battery powers the field emission current and amplifies the radio signal. The field emission is naturally asymmetrical--it allows current to flow only in one direction, just like the diodes and rectifiers used in demodulators. So the nanotube also acts as a demodulator and detects the music encoded onto the carrier wave.
To tune to a different radio station, the researchers change the resonance frequency of the nanotube. They do this by changing the voltage applied across the electrodes. "It's like tuning a guitar string," Zettl says. "The electric field pulls on the nanotube." With the same nanotube, the researchers can cover the entire FM radio band.
Cees Dekker, a nanotube researcher at the Delft University of Technology, in the Netherlands, calls the new radio "an appealing demonstration that very simple devices can be used for everyday [tools]." Whether or not the device is used for sensors remains to be seen, he says, but for now, the simple demonstration is a good start.
Expanding MEMS market to draw industry innovators to MEMS Executive Congress
PITTSBURGH, PA, Oct 24, 2007 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX) -- With the market for microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology expected to grow to $10.7 billion by 2011(1), both traditional semiconductor companies with MEMS divisions and MEMS-centric companies are well positioned to meet rising demand for MEMS in applications marrying intelligent sensing with reliable performance.
At MEMS Industry Group's annual MEMS Executive Congress, companies at the forefront of MEMS design -- such as STMicroelectronics, Analog Devices, Texas Instruments, Infineon, Robert Bosch GmbH and Freescale Semiconductor -- will join business leaders in mobile communications like Nokia, innovators in consumer electronics like SiRF, and pioneers in medical technology like Medtronic to explore the ways in which commercially available MEMS technology improves the user experience.
MEMS Executive Congress keynote speakers commented further:
"MEMS technology made it possible to address the dream of every diabetic patient, which is to replace the pancreas by a pump that one can wear without noticing it; in collaboration with STMicroelectronics, we are making this dream become reality," said Dr. Frederic Neftel, President and CEO, Debiotech SA. "Not only can the Nanopump match physiological delivery of insulin like no other technology, it also incorporates twice the amount of insulin at a fraction of conventional pumps' size -- thereby representing a tremendous progress toward patients' quality of life."
"At GE Sensing, we use MEMS extensively in our sensing technologies," said Brian Wirth, Global Product Manager, MEMS, GE Sensing. "From the very largest applications, like turbine-powered generators capable of powering entire cities, to the very smallest Raman Microspectrometer devices used in chemical and biological analysis, MEMS comprises the critical building block in hundreds of GE applications in dozens of markets."
"MEMS provides the myriad sensors used in all sorts of connected devices," said Philippe Kahn, chairman Fullpower Technologies and the creator of the camera-phone. "From motion, light, proximity sensors to a chemical lab the size of a sugar cube, MEMS is driving major technology breakthroughs. Now the key is our ability to continue to drive down size while expending functionality and creating a new generation of advanced software that can deliver on the magic. What we have seen in the groundbreaking iPhone is just the beginning."
Several key sponsors of MEMS Executive Congress offered opinions on why the MEMS industry is taking off:
"Advancements in wafer bonding and lithography equipment are increasing volume processing of MEMS devices," said Steven Dwyer, vice president and general manager of EV Group (EVG) North America and the Platinum Sponsor of MEMS Executive Congress. "High-volume, ultra-thin wafer processing, for example, reduces form factor and power consumption -- features that are extremely attractive to manufacturers of mobile phones and other high-volume consumer electronics applications."
"MEMS provides reliability to the many sensors we use in daily life," said Mike Kipp, general manager of SUSS MicroTec, the Gold Sponsor of MEMS Executive Congress. "In cars, MEMS provides the air bag sensing, tire pressure sensing and stability control on which we now rely. In projectors and television displays, MEMS enhances the quality of pictures we now can see. MEMS really is redefining the ways in which we interact with applications, and they with us."
"MEMS has been around for 30 years. The market continues to see healthy growth as the technology proves to be reliable, rugged and supports both low- and high-volume fabrication demands. The devices are now readily available and the general costs to manufacture are coming down," said Dr. David Haynes, Business Services Director, Surface Technology Systems (STS), Silver Sponsor of MEMS Executive Congress.
Karen Lightman, managing director of MEMS Industry Group, offered her opinion on the topic: "We are just seeing the tip of the iceberg of new applications for MEMS. For example, wireless is opening up new opportunities for MEMS sensors. Whatever an application is sensing -- temperature, pressure, water and air flow, video, light, sound -- it must be conveyed in some fashion. Wireless is the fundamental connectivity mechanism for MEMS devices to communicate with the external world. It is truly an exciting time to be in this industry."
At MEMS Industry Group's annual MEMS Executive Congress, companies at the forefront of MEMS design -- such as STMicroelectronics, Analog Devices, Texas Instruments, Infineon, Robert Bosch GmbH and Freescale Semiconductor -- will join business leaders in mobile communications like Nokia, innovators in consumer electronics like SiRF, and pioneers in medical technology like Medtronic to explore the ways in which commercially available MEMS technology improves the user experience.
MEMS Executive Congress keynote speakers commented further:
"MEMS technology made it possible to address the dream of every diabetic patient, which is to replace the pancreas by a pump that one can wear without noticing it; in collaboration with STMicroelectronics, we are making this dream become reality," said Dr. Frederic Neftel, President and CEO, Debiotech SA. "Not only can the Nanopump match physiological delivery of insulin like no other technology, it also incorporates twice the amount of insulin at a fraction of conventional pumps' size -- thereby representing a tremendous progress toward patients' quality of life."
"At GE Sensing, we use MEMS extensively in our sensing technologies," said Brian Wirth, Global Product Manager, MEMS, GE Sensing. "From the very largest applications, like turbine-powered generators capable of powering entire cities, to the very smallest Raman Microspectrometer devices used in chemical and biological analysis, MEMS comprises the critical building block in hundreds of GE applications in dozens of markets."
"MEMS provides the myriad sensors used in all sorts of connected devices," said Philippe Kahn, chairman Fullpower Technologies and the creator of the camera-phone. "From motion, light, proximity sensors to a chemical lab the size of a sugar cube, MEMS is driving major technology breakthroughs. Now the key is our ability to continue to drive down size while expending functionality and creating a new generation of advanced software that can deliver on the magic. What we have seen in the groundbreaking iPhone is just the beginning."
Several key sponsors of MEMS Executive Congress offered opinions on why the MEMS industry is taking off:
"Advancements in wafer bonding and lithography equipment are increasing volume processing of MEMS devices," said Steven Dwyer, vice president and general manager of EV Group (EVG) North America and the Platinum Sponsor of MEMS Executive Congress. "High-volume, ultra-thin wafer processing, for example, reduces form factor and power consumption -- features that are extremely attractive to manufacturers of mobile phones and other high-volume consumer electronics applications."
"MEMS provides reliability to the many sensors we use in daily life," said Mike Kipp, general manager of SUSS MicroTec, the Gold Sponsor of MEMS Executive Congress. "In cars, MEMS provides the air bag sensing, tire pressure sensing and stability control on which we now rely. In projectors and television displays, MEMS enhances the quality of pictures we now can see. MEMS really is redefining the ways in which we interact with applications, and they with us."
"MEMS has been around for 30 years. The market continues to see healthy growth as the technology proves to be reliable, rugged and supports both low- and high-volume fabrication demands. The devices are now readily available and the general costs to manufacture are coming down," said Dr. David Haynes, Business Services Director, Surface Technology Systems (STS), Silver Sponsor of MEMS Executive Congress.
Karen Lightman, managing director of MEMS Industry Group, offered her opinion on the topic: "We are just seeing the tip of the iceberg of new applications for MEMS. For example, wireless is opening up new opportunities for MEMS sensors. Whatever an application is sensing -- temperature, pressure, water and air flow, video, light, sound -- it must be conveyed in some fashion. Wireless is the fundamental connectivity mechanism for MEMS devices to communicate with the external world. It is truly an exciting time to be in this industry."
Plastic sheets perform auto-origami
Sheets of plastic that fold into tiny pyramids, boxes and spheres when water is added have been created by French researchers. They think the technique could one day be used to mass-produce the microscopic 3D components used in found inside many different devices from printers to medical sensors.
José Bico and colleagues at the École Supérieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles (ESPCI), in Paris, together with a team from the Paris Institute of Technology have shown that water droplets can be used to make flat shapes fold up to create more complex 3D structures.
They add water droplets to flat plastic shapes just a couple of millimetres across. As a droplet evaporates, its volume changes while the surface tension holding it to the sheet remains the same. This pulls the shape into a more complex 3D structure. A time-lapse video shows a triangular shape folding into a pyramid (.mov format).
Bico and colleagues designed sheets to make different shapes. For example, a flower-like pattern produces a sphere, a triangle becomes a tetrahedron and a flat cross shape folds into a cube. They also discovered that varying the thickness of the sheet controls how much a structure folds up and that the effect of surface tension becomes stronger as the size is decreased.
Mass production
The French team think the technique could perhaps be used to make certain microscopic 3D structures in large quantities.
Such structures are an important part of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) – tiny components used for many applications including squirting ink from printer heads and moving tiny mirrors in some video displays.
But such microscopic 3D structures are difficult to make normally since the most manufacturing techniques are geared towards making flat components such as computer chips.
The origami technique could turn simple flat sheets into more complex structures with a drop of moisture, which would then be fixed into shape with a blast of heat, the teams reckons.
A contrasting folding technique, which involved using hot water to melt solder, has been exploited before for assembling a working light sensor (see For self-folding 3D electronics – just add water).
17:07 12 April 2007
NewScientist.com news service
Tom Simonite
José Bico and colleagues at the École Supérieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles (ESPCI), in Paris, together with a team from the Paris Institute of Technology have shown that water droplets can be used to make flat shapes fold up to create more complex 3D structures.
They add water droplets to flat plastic shapes just a couple of millimetres across. As a droplet evaporates, its volume changes while the surface tension holding it to the sheet remains the same. This pulls the shape into a more complex 3D structure. A time-lapse video shows a triangular shape folding into a pyramid (.mov format).
Bico and colleagues designed sheets to make different shapes. For example, a flower-like pattern produces a sphere, a triangle becomes a tetrahedron and a flat cross shape folds into a cube. They also discovered that varying the thickness of the sheet controls how much a structure folds up and that the effect of surface tension becomes stronger as the size is decreased.
Mass production
The French team think the technique could perhaps be used to make certain microscopic 3D structures in large quantities.
Such structures are an important part of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) – tiny components used for many applications including squirting ink from printer heads and moving tiny mirrors in some video displays.
But such microscopic 3D structures are difficult to make normally since the most manufacturing techniques are geared towards making flat components such as computer chips.
The origami technique could turn simple flat sheets into more complex structures with a drop of moisture, which would then be fixed into shape with a blast of heat, the teams reckons.
A contrasting folding technique, which involved using hot water to melt solder, has been exploited before for assembling a working light sensor (see For self-folding 3D electronics – just add water).
17:07 12 April 2007
NewScientist.com news service
Tom Simonite
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