This book presents the current knowledge about nonlinear localized travelling excitations in crystals. Excitations can be vibrational, electronic, magnetic or of many other types, in many different types of crystals, as silicates, semiconductors and metals. The book is dedicated to the British scientist FM Russell, recently turned 80. He found 50 years ago that a mineral mica muscovite was able to record elementary charged particles and much later that also some kind of localized excitations, he called them quodons, was also recorded. The tracks, therefore, provide a striking experimental evidence of quodons existence. The first chapter by him presents the state of knowledge in this topic. It is followed by about 18 chapters from world leaders in the field, reviewing different aspects, materials and methods including experiments, molecular dynamics and theory and also presenting the latest results. The last part includes a personal narration of FM Russell of the deciphering of the marks in mica. It provides a unique way to present the science in an accessible way and also illustrates the process of discovery in a scientist's mind.

The exponential growth of the number of internet nodes has suddenly created a widespread demand for high-speed optical and electronic devices, circuits, and systems. The new optical revolution has replaced modular, general-purpose building blocks by end-to-end solutions. Greater levels of integration on a single chip enable higher performance and lower cost. The mainstream VLSI technologies such as BiCmos and CMOS continue to take over the territories thus far claimed by GaAs and InP devices. This calls for an up-to-date book describing the design of high-speed electronic circuits for optical communication using modern techniques in a low-cost CMOS process. High-Speed CMOS Circuits for Optical Receivers covers the design of the world's first and second 10 Gb/s clock and data recovery circuits fabricated in a pure CMOS process. The second prototype meets some of the critical requirements recommended by the SONET OC-192 standard. The clock and data recovery circuits consume a power several times lower than in prototypes built in other fabrication processes. High-Speed CMOS Circuits for Optical Receivers describes novel techniques for implementation of such high-speed, high-performance circuits in a pure CMOS process. High-Speed CMOS Circuits for Optical Receivers is written for researchers and students interested in high-speed and mixed-mode circuit design with focus on CMOS circuit techniques. Designers working on various high-speed circuit projects for data communication, including optical com., giga bit ethernet will also find it of interest.

This book represents a significant advance in our understanding of the synthesis and properties of two-dimensional (2D) materials. The author's work breaks new ground in the understanding of a number of 2D crystals, including atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides, graphene, and their heterostructures, that are technologically important to next-generation electronics. In addition to critical new results on the direct growth of 2D heterostructures, it also details growth mechanisms, surface science, and device applications of "epi-grade" 2D semiconductors, which are essential to low-power electronics, as well as for extending Moore's law. Most importantly, it provides an effective alternative to mechanically exfoliate 2D layers for practical applications.

This book presents the fundamentals of novel gate dielectrics that are being introduced into semiconductor manufacturing to ensure the continuous scaling of CMOS devices. As this is a rapidly evolving field of research we choose to focus on the materials that determine the performance of device applications. Most of these materials are transition metal oxides. Ironically, the d-orbitals responsible for the high dielectric constant cause severe integration difficulties, thus intrinsically limiting high-k dielectrics. Though new in the electronics industry many of these materials are well-known in the field of ceramics, and we describe this unique connection. The complexity of the structure-property relations in TM oxides requires the use of state-of-the-art first-principles calculations. Several chapters give a detailed description of the modern theory of polarization, and heterojunction band discontinuity within the framework of the density functional theory. Experimental methods include oxide melt solution calorimetry and differential scanning calorimetry, Raman scattering and other optical characterization techniques, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.

Many of the problems encountered in the world of CMOS are also relevant for other semiconductors such as GaAs. A comprehensive review of recent developments in this field is thus also given. The book will be of interest to those actively engaged in gate dielectric research, and to graduate students in Materials Science, Materials Physics, Materials Chemistry, and Electrical Engineering.

The Symposium on 'Nitrides and related wide band gap materials' at the 1998 Spring Meeting of the European Materials Research Society (E-MRS) in Strasbourg, France, was the third Symposium of its kind at an E-MRS meeting. Beginning in 1996, these Symposia enjoyed a steadily increasing popularity among European and international nitride researchers.
Contributions covered the areas of hetero-epitaxy, bulk growth, structural, electrical and optical characterisation and device fabrication. Researchers from about 20 different countries presented their work at this symposium. Naturally, most papers were from within Europe (Germany, France, Russia and the United Kingdom) but there was also a remarkable number of contributions from overseas (USA, Japan and Korea.)
For about 5 years now, semiconducting group-III nitrides have attracted an enormous level of research activity all over the world. Essentially this was triggered by the breakthroughs achieved by Shuji Nakamura and his group in Japan, who succeeded in making highly efficient blue, green and yellow light emitting diodes as well as violet laser diodes based on A1GaInN. Since then, intensive research related to material growth, device development, as well as to the fundamental properties of these materials is being carried out.
The outstanding contribution of Shuji Nakamura to this field was underlined by his plenary lecture during this E-MRS meeting. He presented his most recent progress towards amber LED's and long-lived violet laser diodes.

Advances in the semiconductor technology have enabled steady, exponential im- provement in the performance of integrated circuits. Miniaturization allows the integration of a larger number of transistors with enhanced switching speed. Novel transistor structures and passivation materials diminish circuit delay by minimizing parasitic electrical capacitance. These advances, however, pose several challenges for the thermal engineering of integrated circuits. The low thermal conductivities of passivation layers result in large temperature rises and temperature gradient magni- tudes, which degrade electrical characteristics of transistors and reduce lifetimes of interconnects. As dimensions of transistors and interconnects decrease, the result- ing changes in current density and thermal capacitance make these elements more susceptible to failure during brief electrical overstress. This work develops a set of high-resolution measurement techniques which de- termine temperature fields in transistors and interconnects, as well as the thermal properties of their constituent films. At the heart of these techniques is the thermore- flectance thermometry method, which is based on the temperature dependence of the reflectance of metals. Spatial resolution near 300 nm and temporal resolution near IOns are demonstrated by capturing transient temperature distributions in intercon- nects and silicon-on-insulator (SOl) high-voltage transistors. Analyses of transient temperature data obtained from interconnect structures yield thermal conductivities and volumetric heat capacities of thin films.

This book describes the operation of a particular technique for the production of compound semiconductor materials. It describes how the technique works, how it can be used for the growth of particular materials and structures, and the application of these materials for specific devices. It contains not only a fundamental description of the operation of the technique but also contains lists of data useful for the everyday operation of OMVPE reactors. It also offers specific recipes that can be used to produce a wide range of specific materials, structures, and devices.
Key Features
* Updated with new emphasis on the semiconducting nitride materials-GaN and its alloys with In and Al
* Emphasizes the newly understood aspects of surface processes
* Contains a new chapter, as well as several new sections in chapters on thermodynamics and kinetics

The symposium brought together more than a hundred attendees from many countries including a significant participation from Japan and other East-Asia countries. Many of the trends observed in the 1st Symposium held in 1996 were confirmed: displays are indeed the main application in LAE (photovoltaics were not included in the topics of this symposium) and active matrix display (AMLCD) is still the leading technology. Future AMLCDs integrating the display drivers onto the same substrate require much faster thin-film transistors (TFTs) than those used for LCD addressing, therefore putting a strong demand on polysilicon performances. As a consequence the quest for an improved low temperature, large area (and low cost) polysilicon process is intensive and the competitors, including direct plasma deposition and excimer laser crystallization of amorphous layers, are reporting significant steps forward. With the tremendous demand for efficient colour flat panel displays, other display technologies are gaining interest. Field emission display (FED) is one of them. FEDs based on amorphous tetrahedral carbon thin-films are stimulating intensive studies on the optoelectronic properties of this complex material.
Large area pixellized sensors for x-ray radiography and document scanning is another field of application in LAE which has recently reached initial production. Using a TFT or diode pixel addressing similar to AMLCD, this kind of device benefits from most of the AMLCD technology. However these devices present an increased complexity and stringent specifications on noise which in turn means materials with improved electronic transport properties. Finally, LAE is a fast developing area in thin-film research and technology. Initially an all-silicon domain, it now involves a large range of thin-film semiconductors and dielectrics, whose properties need to be fully understood and for which flexible and efficient processes have still to be developed.

These proceedings contain the reviewed papers presented at the Symposium J on "Ion Implantation into Semiconductors, Oxides and Ceramics," which was held at the Spring Meeting of the European Materials Research Society in Strasbourg, France, 16-19, June 1998. The symposium attracted 110 contributions, with authors from 31 nations in 5 continents. It was thereby the largest in a series of E-MRS ion beam symposia, documenting the importance of ion beam techniques and research in this area.
The aim of this symposium was to provide a forum for the discussion of new results in the implantation of materials from three different classes: semiconductors, oxides and ceramics.

Neutron stars are the most compact astronomical objects in the universe which are accessible by direct observation. Studying neutron stars means studying physics in regimes unattainable in any terrestrial laboratory.

Understanding their observed complex phenomena requires a wide range of scientific disciplines, including the nuclear and condensed matter physics of very dense matter in neutron star interiors, plasma physics and quantum electrodynamics of magnetospheres, and the relativistic magneto-hydrodynamics of electron-positron pulsar winds interacting with some ambient medium. Not to mention the test bed neutron stars provide for general relativity theories, and their importance as potential sources of gravitational waves. It is this variety of disciplines which, among others, makes neutron star research so fascinating, not only for those who have been working in the field for many years but also for students and young scientists.

The aim of this book is to serve as a reference work which not only reviews the progress made since the early days of pulsar astronomy, but especially focuses on questions such as: "What have we learned about the subject and how did we learn it?," "What are the most important open questions in this area?" and "What new tools, telescopes, observations, and calculations are needed to answer these questions?."

All authors who have contributed to this book have devoted a significant part of their scientific careers to exploring the nature of neutron stars and understanding pulsars. Everyone has paid special attention to writing educational comprehensive review articles with the needs of beginners, students and young scientists as potential readers in mind. This book will be a valuable source of information for these groups.

Emerging Memories: Technologies and Trends attempts to provide background and a description of the basic technology, function and properties of emerging as well as discussing potentially suitable applications.
This book explores a range of new memory products and technologies. The concept for some of these memories has been around for years. A few completely new. Some involve materials that have been in volume production in other type of devices for some time. Ferro-electrics, for example, have been used in capacitors for more than 30 years. In addition to looking at using known devices and materials in novel ways, there are new technologies being investigated such as DNA memories, light memories, molecular memories, and carbon nanotube memories, as well as the new polymer memories which hold the potential for the significant manufacturing reduction.
Emerging Memories: Technologies and Trends is a useful reference for the professional engineer in the semiconductor industry.

This book explores the conversion for solar energy into renewable liquid fuels through electrochemical reactions. The first section of the book is devoted to the theoretical fundamentals of solar fuels production, focusing on the surface properties of semiconductor materials in contact with aqueous solutions and the reaction mechanisms. The second section describes a collection of current, relevant characterization techniques, which provide essential information of the band structure of the semiconductors and carrier dynamics at the interface semiconductor. The third, and last section comprises the most recent developments in materials and engineered structures to optimize the performance of solar-to-fuel conversion devices.

"Long Wave Polar Modes in Semiconductor Heterostructures" is concerned with the study of polar optical modes in semiconductor heterostructures from a phenomenological approach and aims to simplify the model of lattice dynamics calculations. The book provides useful tools for performing calculations relevant to anyone who might be interested in practical applications.

The main focus of "Long Wave Polar Modes in Semiconductor Heterostructures" is planar heterostructures (quantum wells or barriers, superlattices, double barrier structures etc) but there is also discussion on the growing field of quantum wires and dots. Also to allow anyone reading the book to apply the techniques discussed for planar heterostructures, the scope has been widened to include cylindrical and spherical geometries.

The book is intended as an introductory text which guides the reader through basic questions and expands to cover state-of-the-art professional topics. The book is relevant to experimentalists wanting an instructive presentation of a simple phenomenological model and theoretical tools to work with and also to young theoreticians by providing discussion of basic issues and the basis of advanced theoretical formulations. The book also provides a brief respite on the physics of piezoelectric waves as a coupling to polar optical modes.

The past five years have witnessed some dramatic developments in the general area of ferroelectric thin films materials and devices. Ferroelectrics are not new materials by any stretch ofimagination. Indeed, they have been known since the early partofthis century and popular ferroelectric materials such as Barium Titanate have been in use since the second world war. In the late sixties and seventies, a considerable amountofresearch and development effort was made to create a solid state nonvolatile memory using ferroelectrics in a vary simple matrix-addressed scheme. These attempts failed primarily due to problems associated with either the materials ordue to device architectures. The early eighties saw the advent of new materials processing approaches, such as sol-gel processing, that enabled researchers to fabricate sub-micron thin films of ferroelectric materials on a silicon substrate. These pioneering developments signaled the onsetofa revival in the areaofferroelectric thin films, especially ferroelectric nonvolatile memories. Research and development effort in ferroelectric materials and devices has now hit a feverish pitch, Many university laboratories, national laboratories and advanced R&D laboratories oflarge IC manufacturers are deeply involved in the pursuit of ferroelectric device technologies. Many companies worldwide are investing considerable manpower and resources into ferroelectric technologies. Some have already announced products ranging from embedded memories in micro controllers, low density stand-alone memories, microwave circuit elements, andrf identification tags. There is now considerable optimism that ferroelectric devices andproducts will occupy a significant market-share in the new millennium."

Primary goal of this book is to provide a cohesive description of the vast field of semiconductor quantum devices, with special emphasis on basic quantum-mechanical phenomena governing the electro-optical response of new-generation nanomaterials. The book will cover within a common language different types of optoelectronic nanodevices, including quantum-cascade laser sources and detectors, few-electron/exciton quantum devices, and semiconductor-based quantum logic gates. The distinguishing feature of the present volume is a unified microscopic treatment of quantum-transport and coherent-optics phenomena on ultrasmall space- and time-scales, as well as of their semiclassical counterparts. Content Level Research

The book deals with the numerical simulation of noise in semiconductor devices operating in linear (small-signal) and nonlinear (large-signal) conditions. The main topics of the book are: An overview of the physical basis of noise in semiconductor devices, a detailed treatment of numerical noise simulation in small-signal conditions, and a presentation of innovative developments in the noise simulation of semiconductor devices operating in large-signal quasi-periodic conditions. The main benefit that the reader will derive from the book is the ability to understand, and, if needed, replicate the development of numerical, physics-based noise simulation of semiconductor devices in small-signal and large-signal conditions.

This thesis presents results crucial to the emerging field of indirect excitons. These specially designed quasiparticles give the unique opportunity to study fundamental properties of quantum degenerate Bose gases in semiconductors. Furthermore, indirect excitons allow for the creation of novel optoelectronic devices where excitons are used in place of electrons. Excitonic devices are explored for the development of advanced signal processing seamlessly coupled with optical communication. The thesis presents and describes the author's imaging experiments that led to the discovery of spin transport of excitons. The many firsts presented herein include the first studies of an excitonic conveyer, leading to the discovery of the dynamical localization-delocalization transition for excitons, and the first excitonic ramp and excitonic diode with no energy-dissipating voltage gradient.

The Metal-Oxide Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistor (MOSFET) is a key component in modern microelectronics. During the last decade, device physicists, researchers and engineers have been continuously faced with new elements making the task of MOSFET characterization increasingly crucial, as well as more difficult. The progressive miniaturization of devices has caused several phenomena to emerge and modify the performance of scaled-down MOSFETs. Localized degradation induced by hot carrier injection and Random Telegraph Signal (RTS) noise generated by individual traps are examples. It was thus unavoidable to develop new models and new characterization methods, or at least adapt the existing ones to cope with the special nature of these new phenomena. Characterization Methods for Submicron MOSFETs deals with techniques which show high potential for characterization of submicron devices. Throughout the book the focus is on the adaptation of such methods to resolve measurement problems relevant to VLSI devices and new materials, especially Silicon-on-Insulator (SOI). Characterization Methods for Submicron MOSFETs was written to provide help to device engineers and researchers to enable them to cope with the challenges they face. Without adequate device characterization, new physical phenomena and new types of defects or damage may not be well identified or dealt with, leading to an undoubted obstruction of the device development cycle. Audience: Researchers and graduate students familiar with MOS device physics, working in the field of device characterization and modeling. Also intended for industrial engineers working in device development, seeking to enlarge their understanding ofmeasurement methods. The book additionally addresses device-based characterization for material and process engineers and for circuit designers. A valuable reference that may be used as a text for advanced courses on the subject.

This volume describes the increasing role of "in situ" optical diagnostics in thin film processing for applications ranging from fundamental science studies to process development to control during manufacturing. The key advantage of optical diagnostics in these applications is that they are usually noninvasive and nonintrusive. Optical probes of the surface, film, wafer, and gas above the wafer are described for many processes, including plasma etching, MBE, MOCVD, and rapid thermal processing. For each optical technique, the underlying principles are presented, modes of experimental implementation are described, and applications of the diagnostic in thin film processing are analyzed, with examples drawn from microelectronics and optoelectronics. Special attention is paid to real-time probing of the surface, to the noninvasive measurement of temperature, and to the use of optical probes for process control.
Optical Diagnostics for Thin Film Processing is unique. No other volume explores the real-time application of optical techniques in all modes of thin film processing. The text can be used by students and those new to the topic as an introduction and review of the subject. It also serves as a comprehensive resource for engineers, technicians, researchers, and scientists already working in the field.
Key Features
* The only volume that comprehensively explores "in situ," real-time, optical probes for all types of thin film processing
* Useful as an introduction to the subject or as a resource handbook
* Covers a wide range of thin film processes including plasma etching, MBE, MOCVD, and rapid thermal processing
* Examples emphasize applications in microelectronics and optoelectronics
* Introductory chapter serves as a guide to all optical diagnostics and their applications
* Each chapter presents the underlying principles, experimental implementation, and applications for a specific optical diagnostic

The monograph will be dedicated to SRAM (memory) design and test issues in nano-scaled technologies by adapting the cell design and chip design considerations to the growing process variations with associated test issues. Purpose: provide process-aware solutions for SRAM design and test challenges.

The discovery by J. G. Bednorz and K. A. Mtllier in 1986 that the superconducting state can exist in oxides at temperatures above 30 K stimulated research in the field of superconductivity and opened up a new field of research. Within a few years a large number of cuprate superconductors with transition temperatures well above the boiling point of liquid nitrogen have been found. The possibility of using liquid nitrogen as coolant re-stimulated interest in power applications of supercon ductivity. In this book an overview of the known high-Te superconductors and their physical properties is presented. Aspects related to conductor fabrication and high-current applications are emphasised. The material should be suitable for use in graduate level courses on superconductivity. Researchers in the field may profit from the large number of tables and references describing its status at the end of 1997. An introduction to high-To superconductivity must be based on the fundamental physical principles of normal-state electrical conductivity and the well-known characteristics of conventional superconductors. In Chapter 2 this background is provided. Crystal structures, anisotropic properties and general trends of the critical temperatures of the cuprate superconductors are described in Chapters 3 and 4. The processing of superconductor powders addressed in Chapter 5 affects considerably the current-carrying capacity of high-T. wires. In Chapter 6 several fabrication techniques for superconducting wires are described. In addition, the factors limiting the transport critical currents ofhigh-Te wires are discussed."

Defects in semiconductors have been studied for many years, in many cases with a view toward controlling their behaviour through various forms of "defect engineering." For example, in the bulk, charging significantly affects the total concentration of defects that are available to mediate phenomena such as solid-state diffusion. Surface defects play an important role in mediating surface mass transport during high temperature processing steps such as epitaxial film deposition, diffusional smoothing in reflow, and nanostructure formation in memory device fabrication. "Charged Defects in Semiconductors" details the current state of knowledge regarding the properties of the ionized defects that can affect the behaviour of advanced transistors, photo-active devices, catalysts, and sensors. Features: group IV, III-V, and oxide semiconductors; intrinsic and extrinsic defects; and, point defects, as well as defect pairs, complexes and clusters.

Epitaxial growth lies at the heart of a wide range of industrial and technological applications. Recent breakthroughs, experimental and theoretical, allow actual atom-by-atom manipulation and an understanding of such processes, opening up a totally new area of unprecedented nanostructuring.

The contributions to Atomistic Aspects of Epitaxial Growth are divided into five main sections, taking the reader from the atomistic details of surface diffusion to the macroscopic description of epitaxial systems. many of the papers contain substantial background material on theoretical and experimental methods, making the book suitable for both graduate students as a supplementary text in a course on epitaxial phenomena, and for professionals in the field.

The 2008 Spring Meeting of the Arbeitskreis Festkorperphysik was held in Berlin, Germany, between February 24 and February 29, 2008 in conjunction with the 72nd Annual Meeting of the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft. The 2008 meeting was the largest physics meeting in Europe and among the largest physics meetings in the world in 2008."

Thanks to the advance of semiconductor and communication technology, the wireless communication market has been booming in the last two decades. It evolved from simple pagers to emerging third-generation (3G) cellular phones. In the meanwhile, broadband communication market has also gained a rapid growth. As the market always demands hi- performance and low-cost products, circuit designers are seeking hi- integration communication devices in cheap CMOS technology. The phase-locked loop frequency synthesizer is a critical component in communication devices. It works as a local oscillator for frequency translation and channel selection in wireless transceivers and broadband cable tuners. It also plays an important role as the clock synthesizer for data converters in the analog-and-digital signal interface. This book covers the design and analysis of PLL synthesizers. It includes both fundamentals and a review of the state-of-the-art techniques. The transient analysis of the third-order charge-pump PLL reveals its locking behavior accurately. The behavioral-level simulation of PLL further clarifies its stability limit. Design examples are given to clearly illustrate the design procedure of PLL synthesizers. A complete derivation of reference spurs in the charge-pump PLL is also presented in this book. The in-depth investigation of the digital CA modulator for fractional-N synthesizers provides insightful design guidelines for this important block.