September 26, 2008 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

Back in 2005, I sat in on a great keynote speech by Brian Halla, CEO and President of National Semiconductor, who talked about the lack of U.S. competitiveness in science and technology. Halla tells the story of the rallying cry among Americans that followed Russia’s launch of Sputnick satellite in 1957, and  the U.S. response with the subsequent voyage to and landing of a man on the moon in 1969. He said the entire nation was behind that feat and a similar effort is required in modern times to revitalize science and technology in the U.S.

 

July 20, 1969, Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin stands beside a solar wind...Read More

Industries: Business/Market

July 21, 2008 | Link This | Email this | Comments (1)

 

Waiting in the SFO airport to return to Chicago, I saw a news story on electric cars. The electric car shown on the screen had a prominent slogan -- not on the back bumper but across the front chassis saying “Look Ma, No Gas!” The little white vehicle was similar to the Volkswagen Beetle. I was thinking it looked a little more like the old VW Bug because it was quite a bit smaller than the Beetle.

 

It’s so fun to see the electric car come to fruition and mass marketing. For those of you who haven’t seen it I recommend a movie called “Who Killed the Electric Car?” It tells the story of General Motor’s ambitious experiment in electric car...Read More

July 16, 2008 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

An important part of the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS) committee’s mission is to identify the next big thing. Several possible phenomena are being explored to determine what will replace current flow in the so-called “next CMOS switch.” In the meantime, CMOS will be extended by carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene, at least, that is what Jim Hutchby, one of the chairs of the emerging research devices group disclosed at the ITRS briefing earlier today. Graphene or CNTs are being evaluated as possible high-mobility channel materials in MOSFETs. In addition, spin and spin transport of graphene and CNTs may provide the mechanism needed to enable spintronics. But the fun really doesn’t stop there. Other phenomena such as quantum confinement, excitons and berry phase effects are being observed. As Alain Diebold, chair of the metrolog...Read More

June 30, 2008 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

SEMICON/West has been evolving into a slightly different show every year. In many ways, it has become much more regional in its attendance, and it has lost much of its pull as a truly international show as SEMI added regional shows across Asia. This year, it takes a new step with the co-location with Intersolar North America. While, in some respects, people might expect this to cause many visitors to flock from the traditional North and South halls to the sunnier third floor of the West hall, it's important to note the photovoltaics involvement of many of the traditonal semiconductor equipment and materials vendors themselves. Such involvement, no doubt, was a key driver behind the collaboration between the organizations behind Intersolar with SEMI. 
SEMI strives to keep West relevant and current as well, with a fine line up of activities. One panel on 3-D technologies alre...Read More
Industries: Business/Market, Photovoltaics, Related Industries

June 16, 2008 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

Welcome to the debut of my very own blog, the Float Zone. Float zone wafers first came about in the 1960’s as a manufacturing method for fabricating very pure silicon. In the process, a polysilicon rod with a seed crystal at the bottom is held in vertical position. A small zone is kept molten by and is moved upward so the floating zone traverses the length of the rod. Impurities coalesce in the molten region rather than the solidified region, allowing very pure silicon crystal fabrication after the molten region has passed. But this growth technique has been surpassed by the cheaper alternative, Czochraski growing, for most applications. However, float zone wafers have a key niche due to their high resistivity, very low defectivity and low oxygen content, making them ideally suited for power devices, some high efficiency solar cells and RF/wireles...Read More

Industries: Materials, Wafer Processing