Rapid vapor deposition of highly conformal silica nanolaminates

Highly uniform and conformal coatings can be made by the alternating exposures of a surface to vapors of two reactants, in a process commonly called atomic layer deposition (ALD). The application of ALD has, however, been limited because of slow deposition rates, with a theoretical maximum of one monolayer per cycle. We show that alternating exposure of a surface to vapors of trimethylaluminum and tris(tert-butoxy)silanol deposits highly conformal layers of amorphous silicon dioxide and aluminum oxide nanolaminates at rates of 12 nanometers (more than 32 monolayers) per cycle. This process allows for the uniform lining or filling of long, narrow holes. We propose that these ALD layers grow by a previously unknown catalytic mechanism that also operates during the rapid ALD of many other metal silicates. This process should allow improved production of many devices, such as trench insulation between transistors in microelectronics, planar waveguides, microelectromechanical structures, multilayer optical filters, and protective layers against diffusion, oxidation, or corrosion.     

Optical materials

Optical technologies are becoming increasingly important in areas that were traditionally the domain of electronics. This trend is likely to continue into the foreseeable future with optics and electronics being integral, mutually compatible components of systems for consumer markets, industry, and defense. The basis of this progress is the development of materials that have the required purity, physical properties, and optical quality; glass fibers for optical transmission, semiconductors for lasers and detectors, and nonlinear materials for optical switching are examples. In this article, some of the materials of choice for a variety of applications are described and the frontiers of materials research for new areas of opportunity are discussed. Particular emphasis is placed on optical materials for the transmission and processing of information.     

Observation of stable shapes and conformal diffusion in genus 2 vesicles

The observed equilibrium shapes of phospholipid vesicles of topological genus 2 (shapes with two holes) are found to be in agreement with theoretical predictions on the basis of a minimization of the elastic curvature energy for fluid membranes under the constraints of constant area, volume, and area difference (between the inner and outer layers of the membrane). For some particular geometrical characteristics, the shapes of the vesicles change continuously and randomly on a slow time scale (tens of seconds) and thus exhibit conformal diffusion. This phenomenon is a reflection of the conformal degeneracy of the elastic curvature energy. Its observation sets a limit (three constraints) on the number of physical constraints relevant to the determination of the shapes of vesicles.     

Deposition of conformal copper and nickel films from supercritical carbon dioxide

Device-quality copper and nickel films were deposited onto planar and etched silicon substrates by the reduction of soluble organometallic compounds with hydrogen in a supercritical carbon dioxide solution. Exceptional step coverage on complex surfaces and complete filling of high-aspect-ratio features of less than 100 nanometers width were achieved. Nickel was deposited at 60 degrees C by the reduction of bis(cyclopentadienyl)nickel and copper was deposited from either copper(I) or copper(II) compounds onto the native oxide of silicon or metal nitrides with seed layers at temperatures up to 200 degrees C and directly on each surface at temperatures above 250 degrees C. The latter approach provides a single-step means for achieving high-aspect-ratio feature fill necessary for copper interconnect structures in future generations of integrated circuits.     

Optical coherence tomography

A technique called optical coherence tomography (OCT) has been developed for noninvasive cross-sectional imaging in biological systems. OCT uses low-coherence interferometry to produce a two-dimensional image of optical scattering from internal tissue microstructures in a way that is analogous to ultrasonic pulse-echo imaging. OCT has longitudinal and lateral spatial resolutions of a few micrometers and can detect reflected signals as small as approximately 10(-10) of the incident optical power. Tomographic imaging is demonstrated in vitro in the peripapillary area of the retina and in the coronary artery, two clinically relevant examples that are representative of transparent and turbid media, respectively.     

Optical guided-wave devices

Optical fiber is rapidly becoming the transmission medium of choice for new telecommunication systems. For a true lightwave network to evolve, however, optical control devices such as optical switches and multiplexer-demultiplexers will be essential. Optical guided-wave devices built with photolithographic fabrication techniques and electro-optic substrates are compact, low drive power devices that provide these functions. Research is particularly advanced on integrated-optic devices based on waveguides formed by titanium diffused into lithium niobate. Switch arrays, tunable filters, and high-speed modulators have been demonstrated and used in research systems experiments.     

Optical quantum computing

In 2001, all-optical quantum computing became feasible with the discovery that scalable quantum computing is possible using only single-photon sources, linear optical elements, and single-photon detectors. Although it was in principle scalable, the massive resource overhead made the scheme practically daunting. However, several simplifications were followed by proof-of-principle demonstrations, and recent approaches based on cluster states or error encoding have dramatically reduced this worrying resource overhead, making an all-optical architecture a serious contender for the ultimate goal of a large-scale quantum computer. Key challenges will be the realization of high-efficiency sources of indistinguishable single photons, low-loss, scalable optical circuits, high-efficiency single-photon detectors, and low-loss interfacing of these components.     

Nucleosome reconstruction via phosphorus mapping

Electron spectroscopic imaging was combined with reconstruction algorithms to derive the three-dimensional structure of the nucleosome core particle to a resolution of 1.5 nanometers. Images of phosphorus distributions within individual nucleosomes were interpreted as projections of a supercoil of DNA. These were used to orient the corresponding individual nucleosome images, making it possible to reconstruct the entire nucleosome in three dimensions. The structure is consistent with known biochemical and biophysical data and explains site-specific nuclease sensitivity, although differing in part with other nucleosome models.     

Computer-assisted mapping of pyroclastic surges

Volcanic hazard maps of surge boundaries and deposit thickness can be created by using a simplified eruption model based on an "energy line" concept of pyroclastic surge and flow emplacement. Computer image-processing techniques may be used to combine three-dimensional representations of the energy relations of pyroclasts moving under the influence of gravity (defined by an "energy cone") with digital topographic models of volcanoes to generate theoretical hazard maps. The deposit boundary and thickness calculated for the 18 May 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens are qualitatively similar to those actually observed.     

Genetic mapping in human disease

Genetic mapping provides a powerful approach to identify genes and biological processes underlying any trait influenced by inheritance, including human diseases. We discuss the intellectual foundations of genetic mapping of Mendelian and complex traits in humans, examine lessons emerging from linkage analysis of Mendelian diseases and genome-wide association studies of common diseases, and discuss questions and challenges that lie ahead.