Self-aligned silicidation of surround gate vertical MOSFETs for low cost RF applications

We report for the first time a CMOS-compatible silicidation technology for surround-gate vertical MOSFETs. The technology uses a double spacer comprising a polysilicon spacer for the surround gate and a nitride spacer for silicidation and is successfully integrated with a Fillet Local OXidation (FILOX) process, which thereby delivers low overlap capacitance and high drive-current vertical devices. Silicided 80-nm vertical n-channel devices fabricated using 0.5-?m lithography are compared with nonsilicided devices. A source–drain (S/D) activation anneal of 30 s at 1100 ?C is shown to deliver a channel length of 80 nm, and the silicidation gives a 60% improvement in drive current in comparison with nonsilicided devices. The silicided devices exhibit a subthreshold slope (S) of 87 mV/dec and a drain-induced barrier lowering (DIBL) of 80 mV/V, compared with 86 mV/dec and 60 mV/V for nonsilicided devices. S-parameter measurements on the 80-nm vertical nMOS devices give an fT of 20 GHz, which is approximately two times higher than expected for comparable lateral MOSFETs fabricated using the same 0.5-?m lithography. Issues associated with silicidation down the pillar sidewall are investigated by reducing the activation anneal time to bring the silicided region closer to the p-n junction at the top of the pillar. In this situation, nonlinear transistor turn-on is observed in drain-on-top operation and dramatically degraded drive current in source-on-top operation. This behavior is interpreted using mixed-mode simulations, which show that a Schottky contact is formed around the perimeter of the pillar when the silicided contact penetrates too close to the top S/D junction down the side of the pillar

Transcendence over Diversity: black women in the academy

Universities, like many major public institutions have embraced the notion of ‘diversity’ virtually uncritically- it is seen as a moral ‘good in itself’. But what happens to those who come to represent ‘diversity’- the black and minority ethnic groups targeted to increase the institutions thirst for global markets and aversion to accusations of institutional racism? Drawing on existing literature which analyses the process of marginalization in higher education, this paper explores the individual costs to black and female academic staff regardless of the discourse on diversity. However despite the exclusion of staff, black and minority ethnic women are also entering higher education in relatively large numbers as students. Such ‘grassroots’ educational urgency transcends the dominant discourse on diversity and challenges presumptions inherent in top down initiatives such as ‘widening participation’. Such a collective movement from the bottom up shows the importance of understanding black female agency when unpacking the complex dynamics of gendered and racialised exclusion. Black women’s desire for education and learning makes possible a reclaiming of higher education from creeping instrumentalism and reinstates it as a radical site of resistance and refutation

Bimodal neuromodulation combining sound and tongue stimulation reduces tinnitus symptoms in a large randomized clinical study

Tinnitus is a phantom auditory perception coded in the brain that can be bothersome or debilitating for 10-15% of the population. Currently, there is no clinically recommended drug or device treatment for this major health condition. Animal research has revealed that sound paired with electrical somatosensory stimulation can drive extensive plasticity within the brain for tinnitus treatment. To investigate this bimodal neuromodulation approach in humans, we evaluated a noninvasive device that delivers sound to the ears and electrical stimulation to the tongue in a randomized, double-blinded, exploratory study that enrolled 326 adult subjects with chronic subjective tinnitus. Participants were randomized into three parallel arms with different stimulation settings. Clinical outcomes were evaluated over a 12-week treatment period and a 12-month post-treatment phase. For the primary endpoints, participants achieved a statistically significant reduction in tinnitus symptom severity at the end of treatment based on two commonly used outcome measures, Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (Cohen’s d effect size: 0.87 to 0.92 across arms; p<0.001) and Tinnitus Functional Index (0.77 to 0.87; p<0.001). Therapeutic improvements continued for 12 months post-treatment for specific bimodal stimulation settings. Long-term benefits lasting 12 months have not previously been demonstrated in a large cohort for a tinnitus intervention. The treatment also achieved high compliance and satisfaction rates with no treatment-related serious adverse events. These positive therapeutic and long-term results motivate further clinical trials towards establishing bimodal neuromodulation as the first clinically recommended device treatment for tinnitus

Rehabilitation of Concrete Pavements, Volume III: Concrete Pavement Evaluation and Rehabilitation System

DTFH61-85-C-00004Extensive field, laboratory and analytical studies were conducted into the evaluation and rehabilitation of concrete pavements. Field studies included over 350 rehabilitated pavement sections throughout the U.S., and the construction of two field experiments. A laboratory study was conducted on anchoring dowels in full-depth repairs. Analyses of field and laboratory data identified performance characteristics, improved design and construction procedures, and provided deterioration models for rehabilitated pavements. A concrete pavement advisory system was developed to assist engineers in project level evaluation and rehabilitation. The repair techniques in Volume I include full-depth repair, partial-depth repair, load transfer restoration, edge support and diamond grinding. Overlay techniques in Volume II include bonded concrete, unbonded concrete and crack and seat with an asphalt concrete overlay. This volume, Volume III, presents a comprehensive concrete pavement evaluation and rehabilitation advisory system for jointed plain, jointed reinforced and continuously reinforced concrete pavements. Volume IV contains a description of the data collection procedures, original pavement and rehabilitation design factors, extent of the database, description of database variables, and documentation of the laboratory dowel anchoring experiment

An Integrated-Photonics Optical-Frequency Synthesizer

Integrated-photonics microchips now enable a range of advanced functionalities for high-coherence applications such as data transmission, highly optimized physical sensors, and harnessing quantum states, but with cost, efficiency, and portability much beyond tabletop experiments. Through high-volume semiconductor processing built around advanced materials there exists an opportunity for integrated devices to impact applications cutting across disciplines of basic science and technology. Here we show how to synthesize the absolute frequency of a lightwave signal, using integrated photonics to implement lasers, system interconnects, and nonlinear frequency comb generation. The laser frequency output of our synthesizer is programmed by a microwave clock across 4 THz near 1550 nm with 1 Hz resolution and traceability to the SI second. This is accomplished with a heterogeneously integrated III/V-Si tunable laser, which is guided by dual dissipative-Kerr-soliton frequency combs fabricated on silicon chips. Through out-of-loop measurements of the phase-coherent, microwave-to-optical link, we verify that the fractional-frequency instability of the integrated photonics synthesizer matches the $7.0*10^{-13}$ reference-clock instability for a 1 second acquisition, and constrain any synthesis error to $7.7*10^{-15}$ while stepping the synthesizer across the telecommunication C band. Any application of an optical frequency source would be enabled by the precision optical synthesis presented here. Building on the ubiquitous capability in the microwave domain, our results demonstrate a first path to synthesis with integrated photonics, leveraging low-cost, low-power, and compact features that will be critical for its widespread use.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure

Preparing the Perfect Cuttlefish Meal: Complex Prey Handling by Dolphins

Dolphins are well known for their complex social and foraging behaviours. Direct underwater observations of wild dolphin feeding behaviour however are rare. At mass spawning aggregations of giant cuttlefish (Sepia apama) in the Upper Spencer Gulf in South Australia, a wild female Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops aduncus) was observed and recorded repeatedly catching, killing and preparing cuttlefish for consumption using a specific and ordered sequence of behaviours. Cuttlefish were herded to a sand substrate, pinned to the seafloor, killed by downward thrust, raised mid-water and beaten by the dolphin with its snout until the ink was released and drained. The deceased cuttlefish was then returned to the seafloor, inverted and forced along the sand substrate in order to strip the thin dorsal layer of skin off the mantle, thus releasing the buoyant calcareous cuttlebone. This stepped behavioural sequence significantly improves prey quality through 1) removal of the ink (with constituent melanin and tyrosine), and 2) the calcareous cuttlebone. Observations of foraging dolphin pods from above-water at this site (including the surfacing of intact clean cuttlebones) suggest that some or all of this prey handling sequence may be used widely by dolphins in the region. Aspects of the unique mass spawning aggregations of giant cuttlefish in this region of South Australia may have contributed to the evolution of this behaviour through both high abundances of spawning and weakened post-spawning cuttlefish in a small area (>10,000 animals on several kilometres of narrow rocky reef), as well as potential long-term and regular visitation by dolphin pods to this site

Creating Creative Technologists: playing with(in) education

Since the industrial revolution, the organization of knowledge into distinct scientific, technical or creative categories has resulted in educational systems designed to produce and validate particular occupations. The methods by which students are exposed to different kinds of knowledge are critical in creating and reproducing individual, professional or cultural identities. (“I am an Engineer. You are an Artist”). The emergence of more open, creative and socialised technologies generates challenges for discipline-based education. At the same time, the term “Creative Technologies” also suggests a new occupational category (“I am a Creative Technologist”). This chapter presents a case-study of an evolving ‘anti-disciplinary’ project-based degree that challenges traditional degree structures to stimulate new forms of connective, imaginative and explorative learning, and to equip students to respond to a changing world. Learning is conceived as an emergent process; self-managed by students through critique and open peer review. We focus on ‘playfulness’ as a methodology for achieving multi-modal learning across the boundaries of art, design, computer science, engineering, games and entrepreneurship. In this new cultural moment, playfulness also re-frames the institutional identities of teacher and learner in response to new expectations for learning

Interleukin-1beta Promoter (−31T/C and −511C/T) Polymorphisms in Major Recurrent Depression

To elucidate a genetic predisposition to major depressive disorder, we investigated two polymorphisms (−31T/C and −511C/T) in the interleukin-1beta promoter region in patients who suffered from major recurrent depression. The aim of the current work was to compare alleles and genotype layout between patients with major recurrent depression and healthy people. We would like to indicate such combination of genotypes which corresponds with major recurrent depression. Correlations between genotypes for analyzed polymorphisms and number of episodes, number of points in Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, and age of onset were investigated as well. The study group consisted of 94 patients diagnosed with major recurrent depression. The control group included 206 healthy individuals. Both groups involved representatives of Caucasian population. Genotyping of polymorphisms was performed by using PCR-RFLP technique. A specific haplotype, composed of the C allele at −31 and the T allele at −511, has a tendency to have a statistically significant difference (p = 0.064) between patients and control group. Correspondence analysis revealed that genotype T/T at −31 and genotype C/C at −511 are associated with major recurrent depression. No association was found between genotypes for studied polymorphic sites and number of episodes, number of points in Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, and age of onset

Large-scale genome-wide association studies and meta-analyses of longitudinal change in adult lung function.

BACKGROUND: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified numerous loci influencing cross-sectional lung function, but less is known about genes influencing longitudinal change in lung function. METHODS: We performed GWAS of the rate of change in forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1) in 14 longitudinal, population-based cohort studies comprising 27,249 adults of European ancestry using linear mixed effects model and combined cohort-specific results using fixed effect meta-analysis to identify novel genetic loci associated with longitudinal change in lung function. Gene expression analyses were subsequently performed for identified genetic loci. As a secondary aim, we estimated the mean rate of decline in FEV1 by smoking pattern, irrespective of genotypes, across these 14 studies using meta-analysis. RESULTS: The overall meta-analysis produced suggestive evidence for association at the novel IL16/STARD5/TMC3 locus on chromosome 15 (P  =  5.71 × 10(-7)). In addition, meta-analysis using the five cohorts with ≥3 FEV1 measurements per participant identified the novel ME3 locus on chromosome 11 (P  =  2.18 × 10(-8)) at genome-wide significance. Neither locus was associated with FEV1 decline in two additional cohort studies. We confirmed gene expression of IL16, STARD5, and ME3 in multiple lung tissues. Publicly available microarray data confirmed differential expression of all three genes in lung samples from COPD patients compared with controls. Irrespective of genotypes, the combined estimate for FEV1 decline was 26.9, 29.2 and 35.7 mL/year in never, former, and persistent smokers, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In this large-scale GWAS, we identified two novel genetic loci in association with the rate of change in FEV1 that harbor candidate genes with biologically plausible functional links to lung function