The United States of America As Represented by the United States

The United States of America As Represented by the Department of Energy

David S Ginley

Michael A Butler

Timothy J Drummond

Richard J Baughman

Vincent Mark Hietala

Thomas E Zipperian

Jon S Martens

A transimpedance amplifier for use with high temperature superconducting, other superconducting, and conventional semiconductor allows for appropriate signal amplification and impedance matching to processing electronics. The amplifier incorporates the superconducting flux flow transistor into a differential amplifier configuration which allows for operation over a wide temperature range, and is characterized by high gain, relatively low noise, and response times less than 200 picoseconds over at least a 10-80 K. temperature range. The invention is particularly useful when a signal derived from either far-IR focal plane detectors or from Josephson junctions is to be processed by higher signal/higher impedance electronics, such as conventional semiconductor technology.

Superconducting active impedance converter

In a process for deposition of material onto a substrate, for example, the deposition of metals or dielectrics onto a semiconductor laser, the material is deposited by providing a colloidal suspension of the material and directly writing the suspension onto the substrate surface by ink jet printing techniques. This procedure minimizes the handling requirements of the substrate during the deposition process and also minimizes the exchange of energy between the material to be deposited and the substrate at the interface. The deposited material is then resolved into a desired pattern, preferably by subjecting the deposit to a laser annealing step. The laser annealing step provides high resolution of the resultant pattern while minimizing the overall thermal load of the substrate and permitting precise control of interface chemistry and interdiffusion between the substrate and the deposit.

Direct write with microelectronic circuit fabrication

Laser light from a common source is split and conveyed through two similar optical fibers and emitted at their respective ends to form an interference pattern, one of the optical fibers having a portion thereof subjected to a strain. Changes in the strain cause changes in the optical path length of the strain fiber, and generate corresponding changes in the interference pattern. The interference pattern is received and transduced into signals representative of fringe shifts corresponding to changes in the strain experienced by the strained one of the optical fibers. These signals are then processed to evaluate strain as a function of time, typical examples of the application of the apparatus including electrodeposition of a metallic film on a conductive surface provided on the outside of the optical fiber being strained, so that strains generated in the optical fiber during the course of the electrodeposition are measurable as a function of time. In one aspect of the invention, signals relating to the fringe shift are stored for subsequent processing and analysis, whereas in another aspect of the invention the signals are processed for real-time display of the strain changes under study.

Optical fiber sensor technique for strain measurement

During the growth of compound semiconductors by epitaxial processes, substrates are typically mounted to a support. In modular beam epitaxy, mounting is done using indium as a solder. This method has two drawbacks: the indium reacts with the substrate, and it is difficult to uniformly wet the back of a large diameter substrate. Both of these problems have been successfully overcome by sputter coating the back of the substrate with a thin layer of tungsten carbide or tungsten carbide and gold. In addition to being compatible with the growth of high quality semiconductor epilayers this coating is also inert in all standard substrate cleaning etchants used for compound semiconductors, and provides uniform distribution of energy in radiant heating.

Substrate solder barriers for semiconductor epilayer growth

A device for detecting neutrons comprises a layer of conductive polymer sandwiched between electrodes, which may be covered on each face with a neutron transmissive insulating material layer. Conventional electrodes are used for a non-imaging integrating total neutron fluence-measuring embodiment, while wire grids are used in an imaging version of the device. The change in conductivity of the polymer after exposure to a neutron flux is determined in either case to provide the desired data. Alternatively, the exposed conductive polymer layer may be treated with a chemical reagent which selectively binds to the sites altered by neutrons to produce an image of the flux detected.

Organic metal neutron detector

A process for producing a free-standing polycrystalline boron phosphide film comprises growing a film of boron phosphide in a vertical growth apparatus on a metal substrate. The metal substrate has a coefficient of thermal expansion sufficiently different from that of boron phosphide that the film separates cleanly from the substrate upon cooling thereof, and the substrate is preferably titanium. The invention also comprises a free-standing polycrystalline boron phosphide film for use in electronic device fabrication.

Method for production of free-standing polycrystalline boron phosphide

A surface prone to corrosion in corrosive environments is rendered anticorrosive by CVD growing a thin continuous film, e.g., having no detectable pinholes, thereon, of boron phosphide. In one embodiment, the film is semiconductive. In another aspect, the invention is an improved photoanode, and/or photoelectrochemical cell with a photoanode having a thin film of boron phosphide thereon rendering it anitcorrosive, and providing it with unexpectedly improved photoresponsive properties.

Growing community of inventors

Albuquerque, NM, United States of America

David S Ginley