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“The era of Moores Law is ending”–aren’t you tired of hearing that prediction over and over again, only to be proven a premature death declaration. Well brace yourself, because once again the status quo in microchip-making, photolithography, has been reaffirmed. A new technique that adds nanoparticles atop conventional photo-resist claims to be able to extend the lifetime of existing semiconductor fabrication equipment indefinitely. Look for more dire predictions of the “end of the road” to be proven wrong over and over again. R.C.J.

Optical lithography can be extended below 32 nanometers, according to Pixelligent Technologies LLC, which has developed a nanocrystalline material that it says enhances the resolution of existing photolithography equipment. The company recently closed a $2 million round of equity financing to commercialize its nanocrystals, which it says have applications in optical lithography and as nanocomposite coatings for microelectronics. Pixelligent’s secret sauce involves the fabrication of nonsilicon nanocrystals with properties custom-designed for specific applications. The company declined to identify the exact composition of its proprietary nanoparticles, except to say that they are nonsilicon. By combining the semiconducting nanocrystals with lithographic polymers, Pixelligent claims traditional resists can be improved so that they can image much finer lines. The company also claims its nanocrystal coatings result in higher yields, lower materials costs and improved throughput, all while using existing chip fabrication equipment.
Text: http://www.eetimes.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=217700848

Printable electronics uses room-temperature processing to fabricate transistorized circuitry atop cheap plastic substrates, sidestepping the usual need for expensive high-temperature semiconductor processing. Printing displays using ink-jet technology works by loading the liquid “color” cartridges with liquid-semiconductors, -insulators and -conductors–all transparent. Then using micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) jets, pico-liter droplets of the electronic circuit materials can be deposited in patterns without the waste of conventional semiconductor processing. Look for printed versions of displays using organic light-emitting diodes within two years.

Printing high-definition organic LED (OLED) displays with ultrahigh-resolution inkjet printers will lower the cost and increase the color accuracy of flat-panel televisions, according to Seiko Epson Corp. Tokyo-based Seiko Epson will reveal details of its fabrication process at the Society for Information Display (SID) International Symposium, Seminar and Exhibition, running May 31-June 5 in San Antonio, Texas. Epson’s OLED Development Center will show an ink-jet printed 14-inch OLED display that the company claims has the same resolution as, and better color accuracy than, today’s 37-inch 1080p high-definition TVs.
Text: http://www.eetimes.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=217700616

Touchscreens have been here for 20 years, but it took the Apple iPhone to popularize them for consumer electronics. Now everyone and their brother is courting touchscreen makers to create an equally “wow” experience for their users. To rival Apple, however, you can’t go with the plastic resistive touch screens, but have to go with the $22 all-glass capacitive version from makers like Ocular, which will demo the first netbook-sized projected capacitive touchscreen at the upcoming SID show next week.

Ocular Inc. will demonstrate the first capacitive touchscreen to be used on a netbook at the Society for Information Display (SID) International Symposium, Seminar and Exhibition May 31″June 5 in San Antonio, Texas. The reference design will demonstrate how gesture recognition, made famous by Apple’s iPhone, can be enabled on netbook screens of up to 10.4 inches in size. The company has been manufacturing custom touchscreens at its own fab in China for more than 20 years—mostly smaller screens used by industrial customers for the control panels on embedded equipment. But the popularity of Apple’s iPhone screen has left competing handset makers such as Nokia, Palm, Research in Motion (RIM) and Samsung scrambling to emulate Apple’s success. Market watcher iSuppli Corp. (El Segundo, Calif.) now predicts the worldwide market for touchscreens will nearly double between 2008 and 2013, going from $3.4 billion to $6.4 billion.
Text: http://www.eetimes.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=217700123

Since no major bridges have collapsed lately, the push to install 24/7 monitoring equipment has faded of late, but not so for these Austrailian researchers working with colleagues in China. Using nanotube-laced composites, the sensors could be attached to bridge structures, then be monitored by the conductivity which changes if cracks develop Look for systems like this to be called for the next time a bridge collapses R.C.J.

Nanocomposites are being developed to monitor the safety of bridges and aircraft by embedding nanotubes into sensors that change their conductivity when cracks or other structural defects occur. The Queensland University of Technology (Brisbane, Austrailia) said it will conduct the research in cooperation with the four other Australian universities. The polymer nanocomposite contains carbon nanotubes which change the conductivity of the material when cracks appear in structures where it is used. By monitoring the electrical conductivity of the material, early detection of structural faults may be possible.
Text: http://www.eetimes.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=217600656

Every time you update your software from the dialog box that automatically pops up while you are using a program, that software vendor collects information about you from your own computer then “phones home” to report your doings. Now a company has turned that capability into a product, selling their stealth code to software developers where it lies dormant until pirated, then reports in about the pirates whereabouts. Look for everybody’s software to start reporting in about your activities. Make sure you are not using any “free” copies of software–big brother is watching. R.C.J.

Software vendors fed up with software piracy have responded by beefing up their licensing and activation procedures, only to have pirates crack their code again. A company called V.i. Laboratories Inc. is proposing a new approach called CodeArmor Intelligence, which embeds stealth algorithms inside programs that “phone home” with information about the unauthorized usage of software, including their Internet domain and even a company location on a Google map.
Text: http://www.eetimes.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=217600543