Influence of reactive ion etching on the minority carrier lifetime in P-type Si

Quasi-steady-state photoconductance (QSSPC) and deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) were used to characterize the recombination properties of reactive ion etched p-type Si. The effective lifetime of the plasma-processed samples degraded after etching, with the densities of recombination centers increasing linearly with etch time, before reaching a plateau. Evidence is provided for the long-range (> 2 µm) migration of defects in the samples plasma-etched at room temperature. The relationship between rf power and lifetime degradation is also discussed. A defect with energy position at (0.31 ± 0.02) eV was detected by DLTS in RIE p-Si, whereas no defect level was measured in n-type Si. We demonstrate that this energy level could be used to adequately model the injection-dependence of the measured carrier lifetimes using the Shockley-Read-Hall model

Can Trade with the People’s Republic of China be an Engine of Growth for Developing Asia?

The recession in the United States in the wake of the global financial crisis has had a pronounced negative impact on developing Asia's exports and growth. As a result, developing Asian countries are increasingly looking to the People's Republic of China (PRC) as a new source of demand and growth. The central objective of this paper is to empirically assess whether trade with the PRC can become an engine of growth for developing Asia. To do so, we examine the structure of PRC's trade with developing Asia, in particular the relative shares of parts and components versus final goods in its imports from the region. Our most significant result is that the share of final goods in the PRC's imports from East and Southeast Asia has been rising while the share of parts and components has been falling, suggesting that the PRC is becoming more of a consumer and less of an assembler. This provides ground for optimism about the prospects of trade with the PRC as a source of resilience against extra-regional demand shocks in the short run and an additional source of growth in the long run

Capital Flows and Real Exchange Rates in Emerging Asian Countries

This paper examines the nexus between capital flows and real exchange rate (RER) in emerging Asian countries using a dynamic panel-data model for 2000–2009. In contrast to previous studies, capital flows here are separated into foreign direct investment (FDI), portfolio investment, and other investment (bank loans) flows. Inflows and outflows are also treated separately in the model. The estimation results show that compositions of capital flows matter in determining impacts of the flows on the RER. Portfolio investment and other investment (including bank loans) bring in a faster RER appreciation than FDI. However, the magnitudes of appreciation among capital flows are close to each other. The increasing importance of merger and acquisition activities in FDI makes the flows behave closer to other forms of capital flows, especially portfolio investment. The estimation results also show that capital outflows bring about a greater degree of exchange rate adjustment than capital inflows. All in all, the results imply that the swift rebound of capital flows in the region could result in excessive appreciation of the (real) currencies, especially when capital flows are in a form of portfolio investment and bank loans

The Currency of the People’s Republic of China and Production Fragmentation

This paper examines how an appreciation of the currency of the People's Republic of China (PRC) - renminbi - affects the country's exports in the context of production fragmentation, using a panel data set of the PRC's trade for 1992/93-2008/09. It constructs two exchange rates for renminbi: one is a bilateral real exchange rate and the other is a real effective exchange rate against East Asian component suppliers. It is found that appreciation of the renminbi would somewhat offset a reduction in the volume of the PRC's exports induced by lower importing costs of components. Hence, evidence casts further doubts on the efficacy of further unilateral reform of the renminbi exchange rate regime on correcting trade imbalances

Association of Southeast Asian Nations, People's Republic of China, and India Growth and the Rest of the World: The Role of Trade

This paper explores the impact of past and future growth in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)1 Since the mid-1990s, ACI growth has improved the non-oil terms of trade of the developed countries. There have also been strong complementarities between ACI suppliers of intermediate inputs and PRC exports. More developed Asian countries have benefited from PRC capital goods demand. ACI growth has, however, put competitive pressures on other less-developed manufacturing exporters, worsening their terms of trade and constraining their pricing ability. ACI growth has been especially beneficial for oil and minerals commodity producers. On the other hand, net food importers and oil importing countries have been adversely affected by high import costs. , the People's Republic of China (PRC), and India - here referred to as the ACI countries - on aggregate welfare, relative wages, and global emissions in the rest of the world. It outlines several analytical frameworks, considers effects over the past decade and, based on consensus forecasts, the implications of that growth for the rest of the world in the decades to come. Future ACI growth provides opportunities and challenges for the rest of the world. For developed countries the opportunities are for selling high-end services and capital and consumer goods in the ACI markets and enjoying the benefits from intra-industry trade; the challenges will come from increased head-to-head competition in manufactured goods and services that should become more intense in future decades. For medium-income producers currently at between 30% and 60% of US levels, there will be a tougher tradeoff between more intensive competition with the PRC and serving the growing middle classes in ACI countries. For poorer countries, there will greater opportunities for becoming part of global supply chains in manufactured exports. Standard frameworks that assume internal factor mobility suggest continuing pressures for wage inequality in developed countries. But these hinge on the assumption that the ACI and developed countries will continue to produce similar products and that the ACI will specialize in unskilled labor-intensive products. In fact, as their exports become more technology - intensive and developed countries more specialized these pressures could be alleviated. On the one hand, as the "flying geese" process continues, exports from countries with lower incomes than the PRC are likely to displace PRC labor-intensive exports rather than domestic production in developed countries. On the other hand, while it may cause job loss and erode the returns to specific factors, PRC export growth is less likely to be a source of wage inequality in advanced economies

Institutions for Economic and Financial Integration in Asia: Trends and Prospects

Asian economic regionalism has emerged from a bottom-up process, driven by market forces in the absence of a grand plan for regional integration. While the financial crisis of 1997-98 triggered new regional cooperation initiatives, more recently several Asian political leaders have formulated proposals for the creation of a regional economic community, suggesting the possible start of a top-down approach. Based on the results of a survey of Asia's opinion leaders conducted by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in 2010, this paper discusses how Asia's institutional architecture for economic and financial integration is taking shape, suggesting the need to strengthen existing institutions that promote Asian regionalism and to create new ones. While the focus of the paper is on monetary and financial integration, the analysis also covers other integration pillars such as trade and investment, connectivity and infrastructure, and regional public goods. It suggests the need to create new institutions in support of Asian regionalism and to adopt a broad perspective in moving towards the formation of a region-wide economic community based on strong political commitment and grassroots participation

Exports and Employment in Indonesia: The Decline in Labor-Intensive Manufacturing and the Rise of Services

Employment generation has been a challenge in Indonesia since the Asian financial crisis, especially in labor-intensive manufacturing. Drawing on work by James and Fujita (2000), this paper examines the impact of exports on jobs, based on an analysis of input–output tables over the period 1995–2005. It finds that fewer jobs were created through exports in manufacturing industries in 2005 than before the crisis, because of slower growth in manufacturing exports and a shift away from light industry. The slowdown is potentially costly due to the endemic elastic supply of unskilled labor. However, there was an increase in jobs in the services sector, partly because of indirect connections with the main export industries. This could be enhanced through greater domestic and international competition in services. The main constraints to job creation through exports appear on the supply side, especially those related to poor infrastructure, an uncertain investment climate, and tight labor regulations

Regional Trade Agreements and Enterprises in Southeast Asia

The spread of regional trade agreements (RTAs) in Southeast Asia has ignited a debate about their impact on business, and ways to avoid raising the business costs from the Asian 'noodle bowl' effect. This paper undertakes a comparative and firm-level analysis of the impact of RTAs in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines including: a descriptive analysis of patterns of RTA use at the firm level and econometric analysis of factors affecting firm-level RTA use. The paper finds that firm-heterogeneity matters in RTA use. Acquiring knowledge about RTAs through in-house efforts and actively forging links with RTA support institutions, building technological capabilities, and membership of industrial clusters show up as significant factors affecting the likelihood of firm-level RTA use. A lack of information about RTAs and the absence of RTAs with major trading partners are the main reasons for non-use of RTAs. Key policy implications include the need to improve business support for RTAs, to conclude RTAs with major trading partners, and to create a database on preference use in RTAs