High-performance SiGe HBTs for next generation BiCMOS technology

This paper addresses fabrication aspects of SiGe heterojunction bipolar transistors which record high-speed performance. We previously reported fT values of 505 GHz, fMAX values of 720 GHz, and ring oscillator gate delays of 1.34 ps for these transistors. The impact of critical process steps on radio frequency performance is discussed. This includes millisecond annealing for enhanced dopant activation and optimization of the epitaxial growth process of the base layer. It is demonstrated that the use of a disilane precursor instead of silane can result in reduced base resistance and favorable device scalability

Zur Lebenssituation älterer Menschen in Deutschland: ausgewählte Daten und Kurzinformationen

"Dieses Arbeitspapier der Altenberichtsgeschäftsstelle am Deutschen Zentrum für Altersfragen stellt in knapper Form einige Grunddaten zu zentralen Lebensbereichen älterer Menschen in Deutschland zusammen. Es finden sich darin sowohl Daten zur Lebenssituation älterer Menschen als auch zu den auf ältere Menschen zielenden Hilfe- und Versorgungssystemen. Die Grundlage dieser Zusammenstellung bilden im Wesentlichen der Dritte und Vierte Altenbericht der Bundesregierung. Seit 1991 wird in jeder Legislaturperiode des Deutschen Bundestages ein Altenbericht zur sozialen Lage älterer Menschen in Deutschland vorgelegt, der von einer unabhängigen Sachverständigenkommission verfasst wird. Die Berichte liefern abwechselnd entweder einen allgemeinen Überblick über die Lebenslagen älterer Menschen oder vertiefen ein spezielles, seniorenpolitisch relevantes Thema. Die Altenberichte - und damit auch die vorliegende Broschüre - greifen zu diesem Zweck sowohl auf Daten der amtlichen Statistik als auch auf empirische Studien zur Lebenssituation älterer Menschen zurück. Ergänzend zu den Informationen aus den Altenberichten wurden für einige Abschnitte dieses Arbeitspapiers weitere Informationsquellen herangezogen und eigene Tabellen und Grafiken erstellt. Im Folgenden werden in Abschnitt 2 zunächst ausgewählte demographische Daten zum Altersaufbau der Bevölkerung in Deutschland vorgestellt und auf Grundlage der aktuellen Bevölkerungsvorausberechnung des Statistischen Bundesamtes einige Trends für die zukünftige Entwicklung aufgezeigt. Abschnitt 3 sammelt Informationen zu Haushaltszusammenhängen älterer Menschen und den Unterstützungsleistungen, die ältere Menschen im familiären Kontext erbringen oder erhalten. Allgemeine Befunde zur Wohnsituation älterer Menschen finden sich in Abschnitt 4. In Abschnitt 5 steht die gesellschaftliche Partizipation älterer Menschen im Vordergrund. Abschnitt 6 widmet sich der Erwerbsbeteiligung älterer Arbeitnehmer. In Abschnitt 7 sind Untersuchungsergebnisse zur finanziellen Situation von älteren Menschen und ihren Haushalten zusammengestellt. Unter den Punkten 8 und 9 werden Befunde zur gesundheitlichen Lage und Pflegebedürftigkeit älterer Menschen präsentiert. Der abschließende Abschnitt 10 stellt einige zentrale Angaben zu den medizinischen und pflegerischen Versorgungssystemen und ihre Inanspruchnahme durch ältere Menschen zusammen." (Textauszug

ABCE1 Controls Ribosome Recycling by an Asymmetric Dynamic Conformational Equilibrium

The twin-ATPase ABCE1 has a vital function in mRNA translation by recycling terminated or stalled ribosomes. As for other functionally distinct ATP-binding cassette (ABC) proteins, the mechanochemical coupling of ATP hydrolysis to conformational changes remains elusive. Here, we use an integrated biophysical approach allowing direct observation of conformational dynamics and ribosome association of ABCE1 at the single-molecule level. Our results from FRET experiments show that the current static two-state model of ABC proteins has to be expanded because the two ATP sites of ABCE1 are in dynamic equilibrium across three distinct conformational states: open, intermediate, and closed. The interaction of ABCE1 with ribosomes influences the conformational dynamics of both ATP sites asymmetrically and creates a complex network of conformational states. Our findings suggest a paradigm shift to redefine the understanding of the mechanochemical coupling in ABC proteins: from structure-based deterministic models to dynamic-based systems

Herausforderungen für die deutsche Wirtschafts- und Finanzpolitik in der Legislaturperiode 2013-2017

Die neue Bundesregierung steht in der kommenden Legislaturperiode vor großen wirtschaftspolitischen Herausforderungen. Aus diesem Anlass hat das ZEW Handlungsempfehlungen für eine wirtschaftspolitische Agenda der kommenden Legislaturperiode erarbeitet. Die Empfehlungen konzentrieren sich auf Politikbereiche, in denen die Forschungs- und Beratungskompetenz des ZEW liegt. Das ZEW macht unter anderem Vorschläge wie ein institutioneller Rahmen für eine europäische Fiskalunion aussehen sollte, wie die Besteuerungsregeln im europäischen Binnenmarkt sinnvoll reformiert und das deutsche Steuersystem vereinfacht werden könnte. Darüber hinaus wird ein neues Strommarkt-Design vorgeschlagen, das einen kosteneffizienten Ausbau der erneuerbaren Energien und die Stabilität der Netze gemeinsam berücksichtigt. Das Papier des ZEW lenkt den Blick auf Instrumente, mit deren Hilfe das deutsche Innovationssystem zukunftstauglich gemacht werden könnte. Schließlich stehen weiterführende strukturelle Reformen am deutschen Arbeitsmarkt im Fokus der Empfehlungen, etwa im Bereich geringfügiger Beschäftigungsverhältnisse sowie bei der Qualifizierung besonders gefährdeter Gruppen am Arbeitsmarkt

German Contribution to YOPP-SH

Four projects with contributions from the German institutes Alfred-Wegener-Institut (AWI), the Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research (TROPOS) and the University of Trier support the YOPP mission by intensifying observations and advancing understanding of polar processes. During the Special Observing Period (SOP) for YOPP-SH AWI will increase radiosoundings at the Antarctic research station Neumayer and onboard the icebreaker Polarstern to four sondes per day (00, 06, 12, 18 UTC, project AWImet). AWI will also ensure continued operation of two automatic weather stations in Antarctica at least until the end of the SOP. Some 20 autonomous buoys measuring sea-ice parameters such as sea-ice and snow thickness as well as ice-drift velocity will be deployed in the eastern Wedell Sea around Feb./Mar. 2018 (project IPAB) by AWI. Additional buoys will be deployed on the fast-ice area in front of Neumayer Station in May/June 2018. Intentionally, these buoys will drift with the Weddell Gyre and still deliver data during the SOP. Buoys for ocean surface drift velocity could also be deployed on the Polarstern cruise in January 2019, but funding is still required. During the Antarctic season 2016/17 the Swiss-lead Antarctic Circumnavigation Expedition was conducted. As partner of the “Study of Preindustrial-like-Aerosol Climate Effects” (SPACE) project TROPOS carried out various aerosol measurements with special focus on particles able to act as cloud condensation nuclei and on particles able to nucleate ice. The overall aim of this project is to improve the understanding of aerosol-cloud interactions in the pristine Antarctic atmosphere. Quality assured measurement data shall be made available through GASSP and EBAS databases. During Polarstern cruise PS111 from Jan. till March 2018 wind lidar measurements will be carried out in the Weddell sea by the University of Trier. Measurements include horizontal and vertical scan programs to deduce wind profiles. Depending on weather conditions, data up to 1 km (and in single cases up to 2 km) can be collected, with a spatial resolution of 10m and temporal resolution of 15 min. The data, along with other Antarctic atmospheric measurements during YOPP, will be used in high-resolution atmospheric simulations (5km) for model verification and improvement of parameterizations

Annex 65, Long-Term Performance of Super-Insulating-Materials in Building Components and Systems. Report of Subtask I: State of the Art and Case Studies

The objective of this subtask I is to present the main characteristic of SIM (Super Insulating Materials) compared to traditional materials.Two main SIM are considered:- VIP (Vacuum Insulation Panel)- APM (Advanced Porous Materials).Moreover, the present report provides an up-to-date catalogue of commercially available materials & components with technical description and data of each product and information about the application domains and the implementation rules.An overview on all the application areas such as external & internal wall insulation, roofs, floors, ceilings …are investigated through a few case studies.Finally, preliminary results about Life Cycle Assessment of SIM are presented at the end of the report

Biochar improves fertility of a clay soil in the Brazilian Savannah: short term effects and impact on rice yield

The objective of this study was to report single season effects of wood biochar (char) application coupled with N fertilization on soil chemical properties, aerobic rice growth and grain yield in a clayey Rhodic Ferralsol in the Brazilian Savannah. Char application effected an increase in soil pH, K, Ca, Mg, CEC, Mn and nitrate while decreasing Al content and potential acidity of soils. No distinct effect of char application on grain yield of aerobic rice was observed. We believe that soil properties impacted by char application were inconsequential for rice yields because neither water, low pH, nor the availability of K or P were limiting factors for rice production. Rate of char above 16 Mg ha^(−1) reduced leaf area index and total shoot dry matter by 72 days after sowing. The number of panicles infected by rice blast decreased with increasing char rate. Increased dry matter beyond the remobilization capacity of the crop, and high number of panicles infected by rice blast were the likely cause of the lower grain yield observed when more than 60 kg N ha^(−1) was applied. The optimal rate of N was 46 kg ha^(−1) and resulted in a rice grain yield above 3 Mg ha^(−1)

Disponibilidade de nitrogênio, espaço poroso preenchido por água e fluxos de N 2 O-N após aplicação de biochar e fertilização nitrogenada

The objective of this work was to investigate the impact of the application of wood biochar, combined with N fertilizations, on N2O-N fluxes, nitrogen availability, and water-filled pore space (WFPS) of a clayey Oxisol under rice (wet season) and common bean (dry season) succession. Manual static chambers were usedto quantify N2O-N fluxes from soil immediately after a single application of wood biochar (32 Mg ha-1) andafter four crop seasons with N applications (90 kg ha-1 N). Soil ammonium (N-NH4 +) and nitrate (N-NO3-) availability, as well as WFPS, was measured together with N2O-N fluxes. There was no interaction between biochar and N fertilization regarding N2O-N fluxes in any of the four seasons monitored, although these fluxes were clearly enhanced by N applications. At 1.5 and 2.5 years after biochar application, the WFPS decreased. In addition, in the seasons characterized by low WFPS, N2O-N fluxes and soil N-NO3- and N-NH4+ availability were enhanced after N applications. Long-term experiments in the field are important to quantify the impacts of biochar on N2O-N fluxes and to determine the dynamics of these fluxes on soil-related variables.O objetivo deste trabalho foi investigar o impacto da aplicação de biochar de madeira, combinada com fertilizações itrogenadas, nos fluxos de N2O-N, na disponibilidade de nitrogênio e no espaço poroso preenchido por água (EPPA), em um Latossolo argiloso sob sucessão com arroz (época chuvosa) e feijão (época seca). Câmaras estáticas manuais foram utilizadas para quantificar os fluxos de N2O-N no solo logo após uma única aplicação de biochar (32 Mg ha-1) e após quatro épocas de cultivo com aplicações de N (90 kg ha-1 de N). A disponibilidade de amônio (N-NH4+) e de nitrato (N-NO3-) no solo, bem como o EPPA, foi medida juntamente com os fluxos de N2O-N. Não houve interação entre biochar e fertilização nitrogenada quanto aos fluxos de N2O-N, em nenhuma das quatro épocas monitoradas, apesar de esses fluxos terem aumentado com as aplicações de N. Aos 1,5 e 2,5 anos após a aplicação do biochar, o EPPA diminuiu. Além disso, nas épocas caracterizadas por reduzido EPPA, os fluxos de N2O-N e a disponibilidade de N-NO3- e N-NH4 + no solo aumentaram após as aplicações de N.Experimentos em campo de longa duração são importantes para quantificar o impacto do uso de biochar sobre os fluxos de N2O-N e para determinar a dinâmica desses fluxos sobre as variáveis relacionadas ao solo

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements