TCAD simulations on 28-nm fully depleted silicon on insulator structures are used to analyze the charge collection mechanism leading to parasitic current when an ionizing particle passes through the ...devices. A description of the components constituting the parasitic current is carried out for several strike locations. The bipolar effect does not arise as the main cause of the parasitic current as usually reported. The impact of the drain-source polarization in the collection mechanism is highlighted. A compact model was made, and a quantitative effect was simulated for the pass-gates in an SRAM cell using a variation of the bitline supply.
Electromigration and the effects of Cu concentration in intra-metal dielectrics have been examined: these two key reliability issues are fundamental in the development of Cu based interconnects. ...Several experiments have been performed to highlight the sensitivity of the electromigration performances with respect to the various process variants: the impact of annealing, of dielectric capping SiN deposition process and the role of the environment on the diffusion mechanisms have been studied. Furthermore, the dependence of the line-width on the current and temperature induced transport mechanisms have been analyzed. Once more, process variations have been demonstrated to influence strongly the final behavior of Cu interconnects in dual-damascene architecture. Intra-metal dielectric reliability has also to be considered as a potential reliability issue and bias-temperature stress tests have proven that if the amount of Cu left behind the barrier during the process is not precisely controlled, the role of the barrier as a diffusion inhibitor could be questionable.
BEOL Process Effects on ePCM Reliability Redaelli, A.; Gandolfo, A.; Samanni, G. ...
IEEE journal of the Electron Devices Society,
2022, Letnik:
10
Journal Article
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Odprti dostop
The effect of back-end of line (BEOL) process on cell performance and reliability of Phase-Change Memory embedded in a 28nm FD-SOI platform (ePCM) is discussed. The microscopic evolution of the ...Ge-rich GST alloy during process is the focus of the first part of the paper. A new metric for quantification of active material modifications is introduced to better follow its evolution with process sequence. Ge clustering has been shown to occur during the fabrication, impacting the pristine resistance and the after forming cell performance. Two different BEOL processes are then benchmarked in terms of key performance. An optimized process is identified, and an extensive electrical characterization of array performance and reliability is done on the full 16MB chip. The optimized BEOL process results in a memory cell fully compatible with the requirements for demanding automotive applications.
The objective of this paper is to present a powerful procedure for identifying severe single branch outage contingencies with respect to saddle-mode bifurcation induced voltage collapse, given a ...power system operating point, a load demand forecast, and a generation dispatch. The new power sensitivity ranking algorithm for voltage collapse, called /spl lambda//MVA sensitivity, provides more accurate "distance to collapse" estimates than linear admittance sensitivity, yet requires only slightly more computation time. The distinguishing features are the ability (1) to rank all branches in a large-scale power system quickly, and (2) to estimate the outage contingency bifurcation values accurately. As an illustration, the new /spl lambda//MVA sensitivity ranking algorithm can estimate all 6689 single branch outage contingency bifurcation points (/spl lambda/*/sub ctgc/) of a 3493 bus power system within 3% relative error, except for two branches within 7%, in less than 4 min on a 180 MHz PentiumPro PC.
To compare 18F-FDG PET/CT and 18F-NaF PET/CT with respect to disease prognostication and outcome in patients affected by bone metastases from breast cancer (BC).
We retrospectively investigated 32 ...women with BC and documented bone metastases. Semi-quantitative parameters were applied to 18F-FDG PET/CT and 18F-Na PET/CT in order to evaluate disease extent and tumour metabolism. We used time-to-event analyses (Kaplan Meier and COX proportional hazard methods) to estimate progression-free (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in order to assess the independent prognostic value of 18F-FDG PET/CT and 18F-Na PET/CT.
The sensitivity of 18F-NaF PET/CT (100%) was higher (p < 0.05) than that of 18F-FDG PET/CT (72% and 72%). None of the 18F-FDG PET/CT-negative patients showed disease progression at the end of follow-up. After adjustment for age, Ki-67 levels, presence of visceral metastases, hormone therapy, duration of bone disease and response to first-line therapy, only 18F-FDG SUV mean HR 15.7, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.15-214.5 and 18F-FDG whole-body bone metabolic burden (WB-B-MB) (HR 16.9; 95%CI 1.87-152.2) were independently and significantly associated with OS. None of the 18F-NaF PET/CT parameters were associated with OS. None of the conventional clinical prognostic parameters remained significantly associated with OS after the inclusion of PET/CT parameters in the model.
18F-FDG PET/CT is independently associated with OS in BC patients with bone metastases and its prognostic impact seems to be higher than conventional clinical and biological prognostic factors. Although 18F-NaF PET/CT has a higher diagnostic sensitivity than 18F-FDG PET/CT, it is not independently associated with OS.
Human neutrophilic polymorphonuclear leukocytes (neutrophils) are terminally differentiated cells that die by undergoing apoptosis. At present, the intracellular pathways governing this process are ...only partially known. In particular, although the adenylate cyclase-dependent generation of cyclic AMP (cAMP) has been implicated in the triggering of apoptosis in lymphoid cells, the role of the intracellular cAMP pathway in neutrophil apoptosis remains controversial. In the present study, we found that two cAMP-elevating agents, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and the phosphodiesterase type IV inhibitor RO 20-1724, inhibit neutrophil apoptosis without inducing cell necrosis. When administered in combination, PGE2 and RO 20-1724 displayed additive effects. Moreover, neutrophil apoptosis was inhibited by a membrane-permeable analog of cAMP, dibutyryl-cAMP, in a dose-dependent manner. Finally, treatment of neutrophils with the protein kinase A inhibitor H-89 prevented PGE2- and RO 20-1724-induced inhibition of cell apoptosis. In conclusion, taking into account that PGE2 and other cAMP-elevating agents are well known downregulators of neutrophil functions, our results suggest that conditions favoring a state of functional rest, such as intracellular cAMP elevation, prolong the life span of neutrophils by delaying apoptosis.
Time-Dependent-Dielectric-Breakdown (TDDB) tests have been conducted on differently copper-contaminated Metal-Oxide-Silicon (MOS) capacitors in which the insulator was the same as the interconnects ...Inter-Level Dielectric (ILD). TDDB tests are particularly sensitive in addressing the properties of Cu-contaminated dielectric and they are suitable for the characterization of diffusion barrier layers for Cu based intconnects. The lifetime dependence of ILD on Cu contamination clearly shows that the lost of insulating performances can be a new degrading mechanism related to Cu-based interconnects. It is also shown that technological process steps could impact the reliability of Cu interconnects: without effective cleaning steps any effort made in providing strong diffusion barrier could vanish.
Purpose. This study aimed to characterize breakthrough pain (BTP) and investigate its impact on quality-of-life (QoL) in terminally-ill cancer patients. Similarities and differences between high and ...low predictable BTP were also tested. Methods. Secondary analysis of a multicenter longitudinal observational study included 92 patients at their end-of-life. BTP was assessed with a short form of the Italian version of the Alberta Breakthrough Pain Assessment Tool. QoL was assessed with the Palliative Outcome Scale (0-40). Patients were stratified by self-reported BTP predictability into unpredictable BTP (never or rarely able to predict BTP) and predictable BTP (sometimes to always able to predict BTP). Results. In all, 665 BTP episodes were recorded (median 0.86 episodes/day). A median duration of 30 minutes and a median peak intensity score of 7 out of 10 were reported. Time to peak was <10 minutes, 10 to 30 minutes, and ≥30 minutes in 267 (41.1%), 259 (39.9%), and 30 (4.6%) of the episodes, respectively. Onset of relief occurred after a median of 30 minutes. Time to peak (P < .001) and duration (P = .046) of BTP was shorter in patients with predictable pain (n = 31), who usually were younger than those with unpredictable pain (P = .03). The mean (SD) QoL score was 14.6 (4.6). No difference in QoL between patients with predictable and unpredictable BTP was found (P = .49). Conclusions. In terminally-ill cancer patients, BTP is a severe problem with a negative impact on QoL and has different characteristics according to its predictability.
We have completed a set of experiments on damascene Chemical Vapor Deposition Copper (CVD-Cu) interconnects using Wafer Level and Package Level Reliability (WLR and PLR) tests. Two line widths have ...been extensively characterized : w=4 and 0.6 μm. For both line widths, the activation energy values extracted using WLR and PLR data are good in agreement demonstrating that the active diffusion paths remain the same over the wide range of used measurement conditions : Ea=0.65eV for w = 4μm, Ea = 0.7-0.8eV for w = 0.6μm. spite of Ea experimental values lower than the reference values of the literature.
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