Abstract:
An electroforming free memristor (100) includes a first electrode (102), a second electrode (104) spaced from the first electrode, and a switching layer (110) positioned between the first electrode and the second electrode. The switching layer is formed of a matrix of a switching material (112) and reactive particles (114) configured to react with the switching material during a fabrication process of the memristor to form one or more conductance channels 120 in the switching layer.
Abstract:
In various embodiments of the present invention, tunable resistors (1102) are introduced at the interconnect layer of the integrated circuits (102) in order to provide a means for adjusting internal voltage and/or current levels within the integrated circuit to repair defective components or to configure the integrated circuit following manufacture. For example, when certain internal components, such as transistors, do not have specified electronics characteristics due to manufacturing defects, adjustment of the variable resistances of the tunable resistors (1102) included in the interconnect layer of integrated circuits according to embodiments of the present invention can be used to adjust internal voltage and/or levels in order to ameliorate the defective components. In other cases, the tunable resistors may be used as switches to configure integrated circuit components, including individual transistors and logic gates as well as larger, hierarchically structured functional modules and domains. In some cases, components and modules may be turned off, while, in other cases, components and modules may be turned on.
Abstract:
A sensor (100) includes traps (130) that are adjacent to a waveguide (120) and capable of holding a contaminant for an interaction with an evanescent field surrounding the waveguide (120). When held in a trap (130), a particle of the contaminant, which may be an atom, a molecule, a virus, or a microbe, scatters light from the waveguide (120), and the scattered light can be measured to detect the presence or concentration of the contaminant. Holding of the particles permits sensing of the contaminant in a gas where movement of the particles might otherwise be too fast to permit measurement of the interaction with the evanescent field. The waveguide (120), a lighting system (140), a photosensor (150), and a communications interface (160) can all be fabricated on a semiconductor die (110) to permit fabrication of an autonomous nanosensor capable of suspension in the air or a gas being sensed.
Abstract:
Nanowire (260, 360) growth in situ on a planar surface, which is one of a crystalline surface having any crystal orientation, a polycrystalline surface and a non-crystalline surface, is controlled by guiding (160) catalyzed growth from the planar surface in a nano-throughhole (224, 324) of a patterned layer (220, 320) formed on the planar surface, such that the nanowire (260, 360) grows in situ perpendicular to the planar surface. An electronic device (200, 300) includes first and second regions of electronic circuitry (280, 370, 380) vertically spaced by the patterned layer (220, 320). The nano-throughhole (224, 324) of the patterned layer (220, 320) extends perpendicularly between the regions. The first region (324, 376) has the planar surface. The device (200, 300) further includes a nanowire (260, 360) extending perpendicular from a catalyst location on the planar surface of the first region (374, 376) in the nano-throughhole (224, 324). The nanowire (260, 360) forms a component of a nano-scale circuit that connects the regions.
Abstract:
In various embodiments of the present invention, tunable resistors (1102) are introduced at the interconnect layer of the integrated circuits (102) in order to provide a means for adjusting internal voltage and/or current levels within the integrated circuit to repair defective components or to configure the integrated circuit following manufacture. For example, when certain internal components, such as transistors, do not have specified electronics characteristics due to manufacturing defects, adjustment of the variable resistances of the tunable resistors (1102) included in the interconnect layer of integrated circuits according to embodiments of the present invention can be used to adjust internal voltage and/or levels in order to ameliorate the defective components. In other cases, the tunable resistors may be used as switches to configure integrated circuit components, including individual transistors and logic gates as well as larger, hierarchically structured functional modules and domains. In some cases, components and modules may be turned off, while, in other cases, components and modules may be turned on.
Abstract:
A method for increasing adhesion between a substrate (10) and a polymeric imprintable material (12) during an imprinting procedure. The method includes chemically bonding a plurality of moleclues (20) to a surface (18) of a substrate (10) to form a self-assembled monolayer (14) thereon. A monomer (26) is copolymerized with the self-assembled monolayer (14) to form a polymeric imprintable material (12) that is chemically bonded to the self-assembled monolayer (14). Adhesion between the polymeric imprintable material (12) and the substrate (10) is substantially increased by the self-assembled monolayer (14).
Abstract:
Quantum information processing structures and methods use photons and four-level matter systems in electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) arrangements for one and two-qubit quantum gates , two-photon phase shifters , and Bell state measurement devices . For efficient coupling of the matter systems to the photons while decoupling the matter systems from the phonon bath, molecular cages or molecular tethers keep atoms/molecules within the electromagnetic field of the photon, e.g., in the evanescent field surrounding the core of an optical fiber carrying the photons. To reduce decoherence caused by spontaneous emissions, the matter systems can be embedded in photonic bandgap crystals or the matter systems can be selected to include matastable energy levels.
Abstract:
Classes of molecules (10, 20) are disclosed which can, for example, be used in molecular switches (40). The classes of molecules include at least three segments (43)- an electronic donor (13, 23) ("D"), a switchable bridge (12, 22) ("B"), and an electronic acceptor (11, 21) ("A")- chemically connected and linearly arranged ( e.g. , D-B-A). The electronic donor can be an aromatic ring system with at least one electron donating group covalently attached; an aromatic ring system with an electron withdrawing group covalently attached is usually employed as the electronic acceptor; and the switchbridge can be a pi system that can be switched on or off using an external electric field.
Abstract:
Methods for increasing defect tolerance and fault tolerance in systems containing interconnected components, in which a signal level is classified as belonging to one of a plurality of different, distinguishable classes based on one or more thresholds separating the signal-level classes, and defect-and-fault tolerant systems embodying the methods. An electronic-device embodiment including an array of nanowire crossbars, the nanoscale memory elements within the nanowire crossbars addressed through conventional microelectronic address lines, and a method embodiment for providing fault-tolerant interconnection interfaces with electrically distinguishable signal levels are described. In the described embodiment, in order to interconnect microelectronic address lines with the nanowire crossbars within the electronic memory, an address encoding technique is employed to generate a number of redundant, parity-check address lines to supplement a minimally required set of address signal lines needed to access the nanoscale memory elements.
Abstract:
Various embodiments of the present invention are directed to sensor networks and to methods for fabricating sensor networks. In one aspect, a sensor network includes a processing node (110, 310), and one or more sensor lines (102,202,302) optically coupled to fee processing node. Each sensor line comprises a waveguide {116,216,316), and one or more sensor nodes (112,210), Each sensor node is optically coupled to the waveguide and configured to measure one or more physical conditions and encode measurement results in one or more wavelengths of light carried by the waveguide to the processing node.