Insite Peripherals

Edc Biosystems, Inc.

Other

Obsidian, Inc.

Exclusive Design Company

Applied Materials, Inc.

Tronix Peripherals, Inc.

Roger O Williams

Stephen Paul Williams

Jimmy D Godwin

Jon A Hoshizaki

Michael James Forbush

Andrew M Rose

Alton B Otis, Jr

Charles A Reichel

James D Buhler

Michael R Van Tuyl

James Chiao

Lawrence L Lee

Richard De Geus

Titus E Davis

William K Hollywood

Mark E Strysko

Humphrey W Chow

Maxim Roth

Lawrence Lee, Jr

N Nicolas Mansour

Milton C Kurtz

Gregory K Roberts

Gregory M Galloway

Kevin C Hursh

Timothy James Donohue

Robert A Smith

Ching-Ling Meng

Curt M Jacobs

Tarlochan S Jutty

John A Barber

Tarlochan Singh

Duane G Wallace, Jr

Ira B Cushing

Phil R Sommer

Stephen J Jurovich

Invention methods employ the use of acoustic waves to transfer small amounts of fluid in a non-contact manner. In invention methods, acoustic waves are propagated through a separated pool of a source fluid in such a manner that causes the ejection of a single micro-droplet from the surface of the pool. The droplet is ejected towards a target with sufficient force to provide for contact of the droplet with the target. Because the fluid is not contacted by any fluid transfer device such as a pipette, the opportunities for contamination are minimized. Invention methods may be employed to transfer fluids from an array of source sites to an array of target sites, thereby enabling the precision automation of a wide variety of procedures including screening, and synthesis procedures commonly used in biotechnology.

Acoustically mediated fluid transfer methods and uses thereof

The present invention comprises a noncontact method for measuring viscosity and/or surface tension information of a liquid in a liquid containment structure. The steps of the method include exciting a surface of the liquid with an excitation burst of acoustic energy that causes the surface to oscillate; generating a positional data set comprised of a plurality of positional measurements related to the detected position of the surface at a plurality of times after the surface is excited; generating a frequency domain data set from the positional data set, the amplitude spectrum of the frequency domain data set comprising information about the oscillation frequency of at least one vibrational mode of the of the surface as it oscillates; and processing the frequency domain data set and/or the positional data set to yield information about the surface tension and/or viscosity of the liquid. A Fast Fourier Transform technique may be used in generating the frequency domain data set.

Acoustic method for determining the viscosity and/or surface tension of a liquid

Devices useful in liquid transfer applications and in particular, devices for controlling the free surface of a source liquid in acoustic liquid ejection systems are disclosed. The devices advantageously maintain a source liquid to be transferred at a constant height and reduce disturbances formed in the liquid due to droplet ejection. In one variation, a well plate includes a plurality of wells each having a capillary. Source liquid in a well moves up the capillary due to capillary action and arrives at a certain height. The height arrived at remains constant despite the source liquid depleting from the well during the ejection process. The capillary can be separately joined or integral with the well plate. An acoustic wave emitter positioned adjacent to the well plate emits a focused acoustic beam that causes at least some of the liquid in the capillary to be ejected.

Apparatus for controlling the free surface of a liquid in a well plate

An apparatus and method for droplet steering is disclosed herein. A throated structure having a nozzle defines a converging throat with an inlet and an outlet and a vectored fluid stream directed therethrough. The fluid stream is driven through the system via a vacuum pump. As the fluid approaches the outlet, its velocity increases and is drawn away from the nozzle through a connecting channel. As a droplet is ejected from a liquid therebelow, it will have a first trajectory until it is introduced to the high velocity fluid stream at the perimeter of the interior walls of the nozzle. The fluid accordingly steers the momentum of the droplet such that it obtains a second or corrected trajectory. Alternative variations include an electrically chargeable member, e.g., a pin, positionable to be in apposition to the outlet and capillary tubes for controlling the ejection surface of the pool of source fluid.

Apparatus and method for droplet steering

A non-contact method for measuring viscosity and surface tension information of a liquid in a first liquid containment structure. The steps of the method include oscillating a free surface of the liquid in the liquid containment structure; detecting wave characteristics of the oscillating free surface; and analyzing the wave characteristics. The oscillating step may be performed by propagating an acoustic wave from an acoustic wave emitter, through said liquid containment structure, towards the free surface. The detecting step may be performed by delivering a series of acoustic pulses at the free surface and detecting acoustic reflections from the free surface as the oscillating free surface relaxes. The analyzing step can be performed by comparing the wave characteristics with a candidate liquid wave characteristics. Prior knowledge and behavior of the selected candidate liquid can thus be imputed to the source or sample liquid. The sample liquid can be one of photoresist, solder or a biological compound. In a variation a method for acoustically ejecting a droplet of a first liquid from a first liquid containment structure comprises measuring viscosity and surface tension information of the first liquid in the first liquid containment structure and directing a variable amount of acoustic energy through the first liquid to cause the droplet ejection wherein the variable amount of acoustic energy is based on the measuring viscosity and surface tension information of the first liquid in the first liquid containment structure. Apparatuses and systems for carrying out the same are included.

Non-contact techniques for measuring viscosity and surface tension information of a liquid

Acoustic waves are used to transfer small amounts of fluid in a non-contact manner. Acoustic waves are propagated through a pool of a source fluid in such a manner that causes the ejection of a single micro-droplet from the surface of the pool. The droplet is ejected towards a target with sufficient force to provide contact of the droplet with the target. Because the fluid is not contacted by any fluid transfer device such as a pipette, the opportunities for contamination are minimized. Methods may be employed to transfer fluids from an array of source sites to an array of target sites, thereby enabling the precise automation of a wide variety of procedures including screening and synthesis procedures commonly used in biotechnology.

Method and system for controlling chemical mechanical polishing thickness removal

A polishing media magazine for improved polishing. The polishing media magazine may include a conditioning element for rapid, uniform conditioning and cleaning of the polishing media. The polishing media magazine may include polishing media having sections of raised elevation to contain the fluid and may include a polishing support platen having features adapted to urge the edges of the polishing media upwards. The polishing media may be roll fed from a supply roll across a support platen and onto a take-up roll.

Polishing media magazine for improved polishing

This invention involves a containment ring that may be used in conjunction with a substrate carrier used for polishing a substrate to give the substrate a smooth and planar surface. The containment ring is generally constructed such that it tilts independently of the substrate carrier platen that supports the substrate during polishing. The containment ring is constructed with a surface that supports a small perimeter portion of the back side of the substrate during polishing and has an enclosed area sufficient to allow the substrate to precess.

Containment ring for substrate carrier apparatus

A method and apparatus is disclosed for polishing the face of a semiconductor wafer. The wafer is held in position by a tooling head and is contacted by an abrasive pad. A table is provided on to which the abrasive pad is fixedly attached, both of which move in directions parallel to the face of the wafer being polished. A controller controls the motion of the table according to a predetermined polishing pattern and is capable of maintaining a constant velocity between the wafer and the abrasive pad. The tooling head includes a circular platen and a retention ring peripherally oriented about the outer edge of the platen which resists lateral forces on the wafer caused by engagement of the face of the wafer with the polishing surface. An adjustable coupling is mounted to the platen and the ring, and serves to adjustably position during polishing the height of the ring relative to the face of the wafer as well as to rigidly support during polishing the position of the retaining ring. A flexible disk is fixedly mounted between a support post and the platen and oriented substantially parallel to the face of the platen. The flexible disk is adapted to prevent rotation of the platen about the axis of the support post and to transmit forces between the platen and the post in directions parallel to the face of the platen.

Apparatus for chemical mechanical polishing

An apparatus for polishing wafers, preferably by chemical mechanical polishing. The apparatus includes a table defining a planar polishing surface adapted to contain a polishing medium and a wafer carrier assembly adapted to hold a wafer against the polishing surface. The wafer carrier assembly includes a wafer carrier and prevents rotation of the wafer carrier with respect to the polishing table even when the wafer carrier is moved in a circular or orbital path on the polishing surface. Polishing is carried out relative movement between the wafer carrier and the polishing surface in any direction within the plane of the polishing surface. The relative movement can be accomplished by moving the wafer carrier, the polishing table, or a combination of movements of the wafer carrier and polishing table.

A dual magnetic head having a first magnetic core for reading and writing very high track density floppy disks and a second magnetic core for reading and writing conventional track density floppy disks. Neither the first nor the second magnetic cores require the trim erase elements associated with prior art magnetic cores for use with floppy disks. When writing on conventional track density floppy disks, separation between data tracks is achieved by erasing a circular region on a first rotation of the floppy disk, erasing a second region, separated from the first region by a small gap, on a second rotation of the floppy disk, and writing data during a third rotation of the floppy disk centered about the small gap. With very high density floppy disks, data is written directly between optical servo tracks on the floppy disk without use of the two erase steps.

Dual magnetic head and method for writing on very high track density and

A collet system for mounting, holding, and rotating a rigid disk is described, the collet system including a collet and an expander, the collet having a base portion and fingers longitudinally extending therefrom, the fingers forming a disk contact ring opposite the base. The disk contact ring is less than the thickness of the disk to allow for full surface texturization of the disk. The disk contact ring is not coplanar with any locus of expansion contact points between the collet fingers and the expander, and is sufficiently distant therefrom such that the outward force exerted on the inner disk surface is determined by a cantilever spring deflection experienced by the fingers. This ensures substantially uniform and repeatable outward forces on the inner surface of the disk regardless of minor surface variations along the locus of expansion contact points.

Full surface texture collet system

Growing community of inventors

Fremont, CA, United States of America

Roger O Williams