Chip Industry Technical Paper Roundup: Dec 30


New technical papers recently added to Semiconductor Engineering’s library: [table id=509 /] Find more semiconductor research papers here. » read more

AFM-Based Protocol for Characterizing the Incipient Stages of Plasticity on Hybrid Bonding-Ready Copper Pads (NIST, Intel, Colorado School of Mines)


A new technical paper titled "Probing the Nanoscale Onset of Plasticity in Electroplated Copper for Hybrid Bonding Structures via Multimodal Atomic Force Microscopy" was published by researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Intel, and Colorado School of Mines. Excerpt  "The slowdown of Moore’s law has elicited a paradigm shift whereby shrinking of in-plane dim... » read more

Research Bits: Mar. 25


2D materials in 3D transistors Researchers at the University of California Santa Barbara investigated 3D gate-all-around (GAA) transistors made using 2D semiconductors. They considered three different approaches to channel stacking: nano-sheet FETs, nano-fork FETs, and nano-plate FETs. The nano-plate FET architecture, which exploits lateral stacking of 2D layers, was found to maximize the g... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Oct. 19


Solar mini-reactors The University of Amsterdam has developed a standalone solar-powered mini-reactor. The technology could one day serve as an autonomous off-grid photochemistry system for remote locations. The prototype solar reactor measures 0.25 square meters. The system is equipped with a solar cell, which provides the power for the pumps and control system. This solar cell is placed ... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Jan. 5


Gallium oxide chips The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the Colorado School of Mines, and Saint-Gobain Crystals have teamed up to develop manufacturing technologies and devices based on an emerging material called gallium oxide. This work is part of a three-year program, dubbed the Oxide Electronic Devices for Extreme Operating Environments project, which is funded by the U.S. ... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: July 6


Luminosity record Japan’s High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK) has regained the world’s record for the highest luminosity achieved in a particle accelerator, beating the previous mark by CERN. KEK achieved the record in the SuperKEKB, a giant storage ring that combines an electron-positron collider with an advanced detector. This system is designed to explore fundamental ... » read more