Tag Archives: Small Times Magazine

Apr. 3, 2007 — nCoat, Inc. says that the North Carolina-based nano-coating application facility operated by its wholly owned subsidiary High Performance Coatings, Inc. (HPC) has achieved targeted operational efficiencies. Utilizing protocols and systems designed with Six Sigma process focus and calculated for sustained increases in production capacity and product quality, the plant is now serving many high volume OEM and individual customers.

The facility is designed for three primary functions: efficiency, volume, and quality control. Multiple manufacturing lines can be rapidly designed, engineered, and constructed for expansion to accommodate large OEM and targeted aftermarket applications. Automated systems ensure large OEM customers can be serviced quickly.

Since October 2006, the facility has been providing product solutions for high heat management, extreme corrosion management, abrasion reduction, friction reduction, lubritic, appearance, and high bond strength coatings, and serving a broad range of customers in multiple industries. The plant currently boasts nine overhead sky cranes strategically sited to move high volumes of material rapidly and efficiently.

On Friday, April 6, the company will host the official grand opening at the new headquarters plant in Whitsett, North Carolina. The day celebrates both nCoat and HPC’s involvement with the multi-faceted High Performance Coatings world of automotive solutions. The event will feature displays of racecars, classic cars, and other specialty vehicles.


Kebaili says its CPG-500 is cost effective for a range of R&D applications. (Photo: Kebaili Corp.)

April 2, 2007 — Kebaili Corp., Laguna Beach, Calif., has released its CPG-500 Series, which it calls the first compact current pulse generator designed specifically for electrodeposition applications such as DC plating, pulse plating, and periodic reverse pulse plating. The product targets MEMS and nanotechnology development.

According to Dr. Mo Kebaili, Chief Technology Officer of Kebaili Corporation, commercially available reverse pulse plating systems and potentiostat/galvanostat are typically large and usually not optimized for cleanroom environments. Kebaili designed the CPG-500 to be ergonomic and compact, and optimized it for end-user applications in MEMS and nanotechnologies.

The CPG-500’s power requirement is 100-240 V AC at 50-60 Hz. The unit is microprocessor-controlled, user programmable, and self-contained (doe not require connection to a PC). Further, it promises to be user friendly.

CPG-500 can generate forward and reverse current pulses from 1 microamp to 350 milliamps, with a minimum pulse width of 1 msec. The compliance voltage is ± 10 Volts. The user can program 10 pulse waveforms and store the recipes in the CPG-500 internal non-volatile memory.

Kebaili says the CPG-500 is cost effective for a wide range of research and development applications, and laboratory requirements, such as:

1. Reducing porosity and intrinsic stress, improving uniformity, increasing hardness and decreasing grain size of electroplated thin-films for physical, chemical, biological transducers and microsensors.

2. Silicon wafer through holes void free metallization of high aspect ratio microvias in microelectronic and microtechnology applications.

3. Metallic and alloy nanowires synthesis by electroplating through anodized aluminum templates in nanotechnology applications.

4. Micro-molds, micro-coils and metallic microstructures fabrication.

5. Electrodes fabrication for thin-film-based micro-batteries.

6. Micro-metallization in microfluidic devices and high aspect ratio micro-channel in biochip applications.

7. Platinum catalyst electrodeposition on polymeric exchange membrane (PEM) in micro fuel cell applications.

8. Microstructures fabrication for micro analytical instruments, and micro chemical plants.

9. Electrochemical deposition of bismuth telluride thin-films for micro-thermo electric cooling applications.

10. Electrodeposition of cobalt in anodized aluminum template as a precursor catalyst for carbon nanotubes synthesis by chemical vapor deposition (CVD).

Kebaili Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets a full line of instruments based on its MEMS/NEMS sensor technologies that are used for research and development in industrial, medical, military, automotive, and consumer applications.

Apr. 2, 2007 — Agilent Technologies Inc. has announced the creation of a Materials Sciences Solutions Unit (MSSU) within its Life Sciences and Chemical Analysis business (LSCA). The company’s Nanotechnology Measurement Division will be transferred to the new unit effective May 1, and its new nanotechnology products, including Atomic Force Microscopy, will be part of the MSSU as well.

Michael C. Gasparian has been named vice president and general manager of the MSSU, which will focus on developing a microscopy and optical spectroscopy business that can be leveraged into the electronics, materials testing, life sciences, and chemical analysis markets. Chris van Ingen, president of LSCA and Agilent senior vice president, said, “The creation of the MSSU underscores Agilent’s commitment to grow in new markets. Because of our expertise in both the electronics and bioanalytical markets, we are in a unique position to leverage these capabilities to address emerging customer needs in this new market space.”

Gasparian, 49, was most recently Agilent’s vice president and general manager, customer and quality.

Mar. 30, 2007 — Nanotechnology promises sweeping technological advances in coming years, according to a new study released by Congressman Jim Saxton, ranking member of the Joint Economic Committee of Congress.

According to the study, Nanotechnology: The Future is Coming Sooner Than You Think, nanotechnology will lead to dramatic breakthroughs in many areas including medicine, communications, computing, energy, and robotics.

Mar. 29, 2007 — The Fab Owners Association (FOA), an association of semiconductor / MEMS manufacturing executives and suppliers, welcomes two new device maker members, Microchip Technology Inc., provider of microcontroller and analog semiconductors, and Skyworks Solutions Inc., maker of analog and mixed signal semiconductors.

“I believe it is still possible to be competitive with semiconductor manufacturing in the United States,” said Terry Pope, Skyworks Solutions vice-president of semiconductor manufacturing. “To do this requires that companies take advantage of every opportunity to reduce input costs, maximize efficiency of fab tools, and minimize the cost to maintain top factory performance. The Fab Owners Association provides a forum for best practices, as well as an opportunity for aggregated efficiencies. Member participation is an advantage.”

Additionally, Excimer Laser Repair Corp. and MAX International Engineering Group have joined as associate members.

The FOA’s other device maker members are: AMI Semiconductor, Cypress Semiconductor, Delphi Microelectronics Center, Fairchild Semiconductor, Freescale Semiconductor, International Rectifier, Intersil, Jazz Semiconductor, MagnaChip Semiconductor, Micrel Semiconductor, Microchip Technology, NXP, ON Semiconductor, Skyworks Solutions, Spansion, and ZMD AG

Mar. 30, 2007 — Dongbu Electronics and Dongbu Hannong Chemicals, of Seoul, South Korea, announced the approval of their merger at a special shareholders’ meeting. The resultant bio-semiconductor enterprise, named Dongbu HiTek Co., Ltd., will formally launch May 1, 2007 to provide wafer foundry services and advanced chemicals and materials for agriculture, bioengineering, nanotechnology, and semiconductor processing.

Dongbu HiTek aims to achieve profitable growth while aggressively pursuing strategic growth initiatives. These initiatives call for rapidly establishing a stable base of operations for what the company calls “the synergistic fusion of cutting-edge technologies for bio and semiconductor fields.”

Dongbu HiTek has adopted a specialized management structure to maintain a strong customer focus and global competitiveness across three major business sectors: agricultural, material, and semiconductor.

The material sector will focus on new, high-tech materials such as those based on nanotechnology. By expanding its staff of nanotechnology experts and using advanced semiconductor processing techniques, the company expects soon to characterize new high-tech electronic materials in concert with its mid- to long-term roadmaps.

Through the semiconductor sector, Dongbu HiTek is committed to expanding its foundry business, especially in providing advanced wafer processing to implement specialty functions such as those required for CMOS image sensors.

The company says the Dongbu brand represents a longstanding commitment to improve quality of life through the use of cutting-edge technologies. The name’s lineage dates to 1953 and the founding of Dongbu Hannong Chemicals, which is considered by some to be Korea’s leading agrochemical company. Dongbu Electronics was founded in 1997 as “Korea’s first world class foundry to extend domestic and international semiconductor manufacturing.”

Mar. 30, 2007 — Swiss nanotechnology venture capital firm NanoDimension has established a new investment vehicle, NanoDimension Limited Partnership, which will focus exclusively on investments in nanotechnology companies. European and North American investment opportunities include IT/electronics, life sciences, materials, and energy sectors.

Leveraging EUR 45 million (approx. USD 60 million) in committed capital, NanoDimension has positioned itself as one of the world’s leading nanotechnology specialists in the venture capital community. Limited partners include leading scientific and financial institutions.

NanoDimension Limited Partnership has already invested in Crocus Technology SA, a French company developing MRAM data storage. Jean-Pierre Braun, CEO of Crocus Technology SA commented, “They are experts in technology and its commercialization. In addition to their capital involvement, they provide us with independent and scientific advisory board members. They have even been leading the acquisition of key patents for the company.”

Mar. 29, 2007 — The US subsidiary of ViaLogy PLC in Altadena, CA, and UT Battelle LLC of Oak Ridge, TN (which manages Oak Ridge National Laboratory), have completed an agreement granting exclusive commercialization rights for dual-beam Reverse Photo- Acoustic Spectrometer (REPAS) technology. ViaLogy will combine REPAS technology with ViaLogy’s advanced weak signal processing to enable long-range detection of covert and camouflaged buildings where explosives may be manufactured and stored. The hand-held chemical detection device is also expected to be able to identify minute amounts of dangerous compounds being carried by people.

Dr Thomas Thundat, a Corporate Fellow and Head of ORNL’s Nanoscale Science and Device’s Group, has demonstrated the potential to achieve ultra-long range detection of various explosives such as TNT, PETN (one of the explosive materials in Semtex plastic explosives), and RDX, a major component of many plastic bonded explosives used in nuclear weapons. ViaLogy plans to combine its patented weak-signal technology, Quantum Resonance Interferometry (QRI), with REPAS to build a device effective at distances of at least 100 metres.

Long-range detection of CBRNE (Chemical Biological Radiological Nuclear Explosive) materials is an exceptionally challenging problem and an extremely high priority in the global war on terrorism. Accurate identification of persons and facilities in cluttered urban environments involved in suspected bomb-making activities is critical. The recent increase of terrorists using radio-controlled improvised explosive devices (“IEDs”) and vehicle bombs has lead to significant losses in human lives and building damage.

According to ViaLogy, current systems endanger both security personnel and civilians. The company aims to create a portable or mobile platform-mounted system that can be used to rapidly scan human or building surfaces from a secure distance. Any detected signature will immediately trigger actionable intelligence that can be used to identify, observe, monitor, track suspects, and/or neutralize personnel and facilities at a distance.

Dr. Tom George, ViaLogy’s Director for Product Development and Nanofabrication, will be leading the technology integration project. Dr. George previously headed the MEMS Sensors and Technology group at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

ViaLogy will work with manufacturers and system integrators to fast track production, certification and distribution of the ViaLogy REPAS systems.

March 29, 2007 — Five small Oklahoma businesses that will improve their competitive position through nanotechnology are recipients of nearly $1.25 million in the first Oklahoma Nanotechnology Applications Project award.

OCAST, the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology, contracted with the Oklahoma Alliance for Manufacturing Excellence and the Oklahoma Technology Commercialization Center, managed by i2E Inc., to help implement the new program.

The winners were chosen based on the greatest likelihood for commercial success:

> SouthWest NanoTechnology (SWeNT), of Norman, manufactures high quality carbon nanotubes. With new OCAST funding and new manufacturing techniques developed at OU, SWeNT plans to diversify its manufacturing processes and mass produce a “commercial grade” of carbon nanotubes at a substantially lower price than is currently possible. Production volumes will increase more than 30 fold while costs are expected to fall by 90 percent. ($430,000)

> XetaComp Nanotechnologies, of Edmond, in conjunction with an equipment manufacturer has developed a proprietary manufacturing process to produce titanium dioxide nanoparticles (n-TiO2). XetaComp is developing the technology with the goal of lowering costs. XetaComp plans to manufacture the n-TiO2 in their Lawton facility and use it in sunscreens, both in a direct branded lotion and as a wholesale product to national sunscreen brands. ($250,000)

> Rupture Pin Technology is an Oklahoma City based manufacturer with $5 million in current sales and growth reaching 60 percent per year. Pressure relief valves they make are limited to lower pressure applications because O-ring seal tends to fail at high pressures. The company will research adding carbon nanotubes to the elastomers used to manufacture the O-ring for improved strength. If successful, the valves could be marketed to higher pressure applications dramatically increasing the product’s market size. ($150,000)

> Access Optics, in Broken Arrow, manufacturers and assembles components and complete sub-assemblies for medical related endoscopic equipment. This is done using small particles of ceramic or metal to form a seal between the lens and metal encasement. During normal use, the product is subjected to extensive autoclave cleanings and therefore significant “wear” occurs on the seals. The company will use nanoparticles to improve the glass to metal seal for the lens. $(165,000)

> Martin Bionics, of Oklahoma City a relatively new company, focuses on “state of the art” research in the field of prosthetics and the commercialization of new prosthetics innovations. Their research is focused on a nanoparticle platform technology capable of producing multiple products for amputees. Such applications include development of a superhydrophobic nanoparticle powder the amputee can spray onto existing liners to repel perspiration and incorporating the nanopowder into the actual liner in order to permanently provide a liquids repelling barrier. ($250,000)

By Gail Purvis, Small Times guest contributor


University of Cambridge professor Sir Alec Broers officiated the opening of Glasgow University’s JWNC. (Photo: Gail Purvis)

Mar. 28, 2007 — The new James Watt Nanofabrication Centre (JWNC) at Glasgow University, Scotland, nestled over and into one of Lord Kelvin’s original laboratories, boasts an impressive array of equipment and capabilities: large area, high resolution, immensely versatile e-beam Vistec VB6, metal and dielectric sputtering using RF and DC magnetrons; mask aligning (with double sided capability); flip-chip bonding; nano-scale embossing; high resolution SEM and ATM; atomic force microscopy; surface profilometry; plasma deposition; and reactive ion etching. Metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor technology is an important area of expertise.

This month, coinciding with the facility’s official opening by Lord Broers, the Ultrafast Systems Group was awarded £4m research funding for three years from the UK’s Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council for a project shared between the Departments of Electronics, Electrical Engineering, Physics and Astronomy and led by Professor Ian Thayne.

Speaking on behalf of his 20-person research team and describing recent work with Freescale Semiconductor Inc., Thayne said, “We have convinced ourselves of the feasibility and viability of producing device quality III-V oxides, and jointly developed the necessary process modules to combine these high quality oxides with high mobility III-V channel materials.”

“With the new funding we are now looking to exploit this potential, realizing sub-20nm critical dimension transistor geometries,” he added. Thayne notes that by aggressively targeting scaled III-V MOSFETs for advanced digital applications, the group will be well positioned to also realize devices for mixed signal and RF use.

In the optoelectronic field Professor Catrina Bryce is leading eight investigators in work on semiconductor mode-lock pulsing lasers as compact, low-cost sources of short pulses with higher output power. “For optical communications applications these lasers need to be developed and we need to look at 40Ghz and 160Ghz,” she said, adding, “A further use for mode-lock lasers is in the generation of terahertz radiation.”

In biosensors and micro fluidics JWNC work is in the field of Lab-in-a-pill and aims to develop new miniaturized analytic techniques for biology and chemistry and the Centre is in collaboration on proteomic technology, with Edinburgh and Dundee Universities and in bio-nanotechnology with Oxford University and the National Institute for Medical Research.

Other work underway is on molecular interconnect through molecular self-assembly under Professor David Cumming; molecular architectures in Professor Lee Cronin’s team and nano-biomimetics for bone tissue engineering, where Dr Matt Dalby is in collaboration with the University of Southampton and notes that research is at a stage where commercial developments are looking “realistic.”