Center For Micro and Nano Devices

Recent publication from CMND

The effect of oxide layer thickness on the quantification of 1.5MeV γ–radiation induced interface traps in the Ag/SiO2/Si MOS devices This work presents the effect of varied thickness of oxide layer and radiation dose on electrical characteristics of Ag/SiO

Recent publication from CMND
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S136980011730375X

Optical and electrical characteristics of 17keV X-rays exposed TiO2 films and Ag/TiO2/p-Si MOS device -Si MOS device. The device functionality was observed to depend strongly on the formation of an interfacial layer composed of SiO

On this day in 1947, William Shockley, John Bardeen and Walter Brattain at Bell labs built the first practical point-contact transistor. You could argue that the entire semiconductor industry arose from this research.

Their experiment, consisted of a block of germanium, a semiconductor, with two very closely spaced gold contacts held against it by a spring. The germanium had a surface layer with an excess of electrons. When an electric signal traveled in through the gold foil, it injected holes (points which lack electrons). This created a thin layer which had a scarcity of electrons. A small positive current applied to one of the two contacts had an influence on the current which flowed between the other contact and the base upon which the block of germanium was mounted.

The point-contact transistor was commercialized and sold by Western Electric and others but was soon superseded by the bipolar junction transistor, which was easier to manufacture and more rugged.

You can read more about it in this 1992 article from our archive http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.881336 .

World-first artificial enzymes suggest life doesn't need DNA or RNA For the first time, scientists have built artificial enzymes using lab-grown genetical material called XNA. The experiment bolsters the idea that life could evolve without what we thought to be the fundamental building blocks of life - DNA and RNA....

Silk leaf maker says material could aid space journeys (w/ Video) A graduate of the Royal College of Art has developed a synthetic biological leaf. Potential applications range from the material being used on buildings' facades, or even for support on space journeys for oxygen.

Company says it's created the world's blackest black with carbon nanotubes Black may not not, it turns out, the darkest shade — at least not black as we know it. British tech company Surrey Nanosystems says it's developed the world's blackest material: made of carbon...

Crystals owe their beautiful shapes to the highly structured pattern of bonds between atoms. Negative crystals are the same but they are the inverse of the crystal - they form around a void: http://bit.ly/1qXjqlX via New Scientist

Image: Danny Sanchez (http://bit.ly/1qHkahu)

It looks like some kind of alien virus, but that's a snowflake magnified 50,000 times. And those weird hair-like things on the end? Those are crystallised, supercooled cloud droplets.

Read more: bit.ly/1qdggLv

Pakistan granted Cern’s associate membership ISLAMABAD: The European Council for Nuclear Research (Cern) has decided to grant Pakistan the status of an associate...

A device inspired by a beetle pulls water from thin air (Science Alert) A mat composed of billions of tiny carbon tubes could bring water to arid regions.