A review of the electrical properties, performance and physical mechanisms of the main silicon-on-insulator (SOI) materials and devices. Particular attention is paid to the reliability of SOI structures operating in harsh conditions. The first part of the book deals with material technology and describes the SIMOX and ELTRAN technologies, the smart-cut technique, SiCOI structures and MBE growth. The second part covers reliability of devices operating under extreme conditions, with an examination of low and high temperature operation of deep submicron MOSFETs and novel SOI technologies and circuits, SOI in harsh environments and the properties of the buried oxide. The third part deals with the characterization of advanced SOI materials and devices, covering laser-recrystallized SOI layers, ultrashort SOI MOSFETs and nanostructures, gated diodes and SOI devices produced by a variety of techniques. The last part reviews future prospects for SOI structures, analyzing wafer bonding techniques, applications of oxidized porous silicon, semi-insulating silicon materials, self-organization of silicon dots and wires on SOI and some new physical phenomena.

This proceedings volume archives the contributions of the speakers who attended the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on "Science and Technology of Semiconductor-On-Insulator Structures and Devices Operating in a Harsh Environment" held at the Sanatorium Puscha Ozerna, th th Kyiv, Ukraine, from 25 to 29 April 2004. The semiconductor industry has maintained a very rapid growth during the last three decades through impressive technological achievements which have resulted in products with higher performance and lower cost per function. After many years of development semiconductor-on-insulator materials have entered volume production and will increasingly be used by the manufacturing industry. The wider use of semiconductor (especially silicon) on insulator materials will not only enable the benefits of these materials to be further demonstrated but, also, will drive down the cost of substrates which, in turn, will stimulate the development of other novel devices and applications. In itself this trend will encourage the promotion of the skills and ideas generated by researchers in the Former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe and their incorporation in future collaborations.

In Physical and Technical Problems of SOI Structures and Devices, specialists in silicon-on-insulator technology from both East and West meet for the first time, giving the reader the chance to become acquainted with work from the former Soviet Union, hitherto only available in Russian and barely available to western scientists. Keynote lectures and state-of-the-art presentations give a wide-ranging panorama of the challenges posed by SOI materials and devices, material fabrication techniques, characterisation, device and circuit issues.

This proceedings volume archives the contributions of the speakers who attended the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on "Science and Technology of Semiconductor-On-Insulator Structures and Devices Operating in a Harsh Environment" held at the Sanatorium Puscha Ozerna, th th Kyiv, Ukraine, from 25 to 29 April 2004. The semiconductor industry has maintained a very rapid growth during the last three decades through impressive technological achievements which have resulted in products with higher performance and lower cost per function. After many years of development semiconductor-on-insulator materials have entered volume production and will increasingly be used by the manufacturing industry. The wider use of semiconductor (especially silicon) on insulator materials will not only enable the benefits of these materials to be further demonstrated but, also, will drive down the cost of substrates which, in turn, will stimulate the development of other novel devices and applications. In itself this trend will encourage the promotion of the skills and ideas generated by researchers in the Former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe and their incorporation in future collaborations.

This proceedings volume contains the contributions of the speakers who attended the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on "Perspectives, Science and Technologies for Novel Silicon on Insulator Devices" held at the Sanatorium Pushcha OLema, Kyiv, th Ukraine from It" to 15 October 1998. This meeting was the second NATO Silicon on Insulator (SOl) Workshop to be held in st the Ukraine where the first meeting (Gurzuf, Crimea, 1 to 4th November 1994) focussed upon the physical and technical problems to be addressed in order to exploit the advantages of incorporating SOl materials in device and sensor technologies. On this occasion emphasis was placed upon firstly, promoting the use of SOl substrates for a range of novel device and circuit applications and secondly, addressing the economic issues of incorporating SOl processing technologies and device technologies within the framework of the resources available within the laboratories and factories of the Newly Independent States (NIS). The primary goal of both workshops has been the breaking of the barriers that inhibit closer collaboration between scientists and engineers in the NATO countries and the NIS. Indeed, it was a pleasure for attendees at the first meeting to renew acquaintances and for the first time attendees to make new contacts and enjoy the warm hospitality offered by our hosts in Kyiv. An outcome was the forging of new links and concrete proposals for future collaborations.

A review of the electrical properties, performance and physical mechanisms of the main silicon-on-insulator (SOI) materials and devices. Particular attention is paid to the reliability of SOI structures operating in harsh conditions. The first part of the book deals with material technology and describes the SIMOX and ELTRAN technologies, the smart-cut technique, SiCOI structures and MBE growth. The second part covers reliability of devices operating under extreme conditions, with an examination of low and high temperature operation of deep submicron MOSFETs and novel SOI technologies and circuits, SOI in harsh environments and the properties of the buried oxide. The third part deals with the characterization of advanced SOI materials and devices, covering laser-recrystallized SOI layers, ultrashort SOI MOSFETs and nanostructures, gated diodes and SOI devices produced by a variety of techniques. The last part reviews future prospects for SOI structures, analyzing wafer bonding techniques, applications of oxidized porous silicon, semi-insulating silicon materials, self-organization of silicon dots and wires on SOI and some new physical phenomena.