Silicon Carbide in Microsystem Technology — Thin Film Versus Bulk Material

This chapter looks at the role of silicon carbide (SiC) in microsystem technology. It starts with an introduction into the wide bandgap (WBG) materials and the properties that make them potential candidates to enable the development of harsh environment microsystems. The future commercial success of WBG microsystems depends mainly on the availability of high-quality materials, well-established microfabrication processes, and economic viability. In such aspects SiC platform, in relation to other WBG materials, provides a clear and competitive advantage. The reasons for this will be detailed. Furthermore, the current status of the SiC thin film and bulk material technologies will also be discussed. Both SiC material forms have played important roles in different microsystem types

Childhood Exposure to Violence: Looking through a Life-Course Perspective

Childhood is the most important period of development during life course, highly sensitive to external influences and with a profound impact on children’s well-being. During this period, the foundations for every individual’s physical and mental health capacities and attainment are laid, influencing children’s lives throughout adolescence, adulthood and aging. Violence is one of the most traumatic experiences that can impact the healthy development of the child, compromising its growth and future health. Although violence assessment in the scope of a cohort study comprises methodological and ethical challenges, a life-course perspective allows researchers to understand the effects of multiple forms of violence by distinguishing between repetitive violence over time and isolated incidents, the occurrence of violent experiences in different contexts and settings, as well as the interconnection between different experiences of trauma. This chapter aims to demonstrate the importance of a life-course perspective to understand the detrimental relationship between early exposure to violence and worse health in the first years of life

Development, Properties, and Applications of CVD Diamond-Based Heat Sinks

Heat sink is an essential component to nanoelectronics, microelectronics, and optoelectronics applications because it allows the thermal management of devices such as integrated circuits (ICs), microelectromechanical systems (MEMSs), and graphic unit processing. There are different materials being employed for heat sink production. Among them, diamond has stood out due to its excellent chemical and physical properties. This book chapter focuses on the development, properties, and applications of CVD diamond heat sinks. It covers the basic concepts of heat conduction applied to CVD diamond as a heat sink material and its production as freestanding CVD wafers of polycrystalline CVD diamond, since the literature about this topic is extensive, giving the reader a comprehensive overview. We will comprise the use and potential widening of applications of in CVD diamond heat sink technology, providing the reader with a substantial background at the current development of solutions and new frontiers in the practical use of CVD diamond thermal management devices

Technology roadmap for development of SiC sensors at plasma processes laboratory

Recognizing the need to consolidate the research and development (R&D) activities in microelectronics fields in a strategic manner, the Plasma Processes Laboratory of the Technological Institute of Aeronautics (LPP-ITA) has established a technology roadmap to serve as a guide for activities related to development of sensors based on silicon carbide (SiC) thin films. These sensors have also potential interest to the aerospace field due to their ability to operate in harsh environment such as high temperatures and intense radiation. In the present paper, this roadmap is described and presented in four main sections: i) introduction, ii) what we have already done in the past, iii) what we are doing in this moment, and iv) our targets up to 2015. The critical technological issues were evaluated for different categories: SiC deposition techniques, SiC processing techniques for sensors fabrication and sensors characterization. This roadmap also presents a shared vision of how R&D activities in microelectronics should develop over the next five years in our laboratory

Evaluation of Piezoresistivity Properties of Sputtered ZnO Thin Films

Zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films were deposited by RF reactive magnetron sputtering on silicon (100) substrates under different experimental conditions. ZnO films were studied before and after annealing treatment at 600 degrees C. the crystallinity, electrical resistivity, stoichiometry, thickness, and elastic modulus of the films were investigated. ZnO piezoresistors were produced using microelectronics processes, such as photolithography, lift-off, and reactive ion etching (RIE). Cantilever method was used to determine the gauge factor, and measurements of Temperature Coefficient of Resistance (TCR) were performed on a hotplate. the optimization of the deposition conditions produced ZnO thin films with controlled stoichiometry (ZnO), crystalline microstructure (phase wurzite, 002), high elastic modulus (156 GPa), and low electrical resistivity (0.072 ohm.cm), which are good properties for application as piezoresistive pressure microsensor. in addition, the ZnO piezoresistors had a GF of 2.6 on the deformation in the plane (100) and TCR of -1610 ppm/K up to 250 degrees C.Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Inst Tecnol Aeronaut ITA, Sao Jose Dos Campos, SP, BrazilFac Tecnol São Paulo FATEC SP, São Paulo, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo UNIFESP, Sao Jose Dos Campos, SP, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo UNIFESP, Sao Jose Dos Campos, SP, BrazilWeb of Scienc