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Small Times

Oct. 10, 2006 — Optoelectronic materials supplier Braggone of Oulu, Finland, announced a new product line intended to enable end-user manufacturers of flat panel displays to cost effectively tune their newest product models to significantly better levels of quality and performance.

The material product line, LUXONE, is an enabler of next generation displays and flexible optoelectronic devices. The company says its nano-manipulation platform of optical and electrical coatings and nano-structures can be implemented directly into flat panel TVs, mobile phone and micro displays for brighter displays and less power consumption.

Typical components intended for manufacture with LUXONE are ultra thin and include efficient reflectors and light extractors that are implemented inside the display devices. The company’s current materials products are applied in digital displays used on current and next generation mobile phones and televisions, sophisticated semiconductors and logic chips for digital cameras and console game panels, and flash memories for PCs and MP3 devices.

“These optical and electrical layers were previously integrated into components through complicated and expensive high temperature vacuum processes and have also required complex patterning processes,” said Ari Karkkainen, one of the inventors of the technology and R&D director at Braggone, in a prepared statement.

“With Braggone’s technology and products integration scheme, the coating deposition and patterning can take place through a vacuumless process at low temperatures. Coatings are in liquid form prior to processing and therefore can be deposited with standard integrated circuit and flat panel industry process tools and even with conventional printing equipment,” he added.

For several years Braggone has been collaborating with the VTT Technical Research Centre in Finland in VTT’s printable electronics and optics center, the world leader in roll-to-roll optoelectronics processing. The focus of the work was to test Braggone’s product feasibility.

Oct. 10, 2006 — Danish company Atomistix announced an open software platform for nanotechnology modeling, Atomistix Tool Kit (ATK) 2.1.

The platform includes NanoLangauge, which enables users to build customized applications for nanoscale modeling using modules from the ATK. In addition to providing support for modeling isolated molecules or periodic systems, Atomistix also provides tools that can model complex nanostructures combining molecules with periodic systems and macroscopic elements.

The software is intended to save companies money in conducting research. Over time, the price of nanotechnology experimentation has gone up while the cost of modeling has dropped dramatically. “So we’re very inexpensive”, said CEO Thomas Magnussen in a prepared statement. “You have to keep experimenting, but using Virtual NanoLab and NanoLanguage reduces the number of experiments required and focuses them more effectively.”

Atomistix’ headquarters are in Denmark at the Niels Bohr Institute, one of the leading institutes of quantum physics. The company says it has increased sales over the last two years adding customers such as HP, NASA and Fujitsu. While the majority of its clients are in the electronics field, Atomistix is now also focusing on the biotech and life science sector. Recently, the company has been working with Novozymes to develop a platform to model enzymes interactions. Atomistix has 45 employees in Singapore, Palo Alto and Denmark.

Oct. 10, 2006 — Bio-nano company pSivida Ltd. of Perth, Australia, announced that the first patient has been implanted with BrachySil for the treatment of inoperable pancreatic cancer at Guys and St. Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust Hospital in London, a major center for cancer therapy in the United Kingdom.

The treatment delivers BrachySil directly to a tumor in the pancreas via endoscopic ultrasound (used to assist in locating the delivery point). BrachySil is a novel oncology product which comprises a combination of BioSilicon and the isotope 32Phosphorus, a proven anti-cancer therapeutic.

The targeted and localized nature of the product could potentially provide oncologists with an effective and user-friendly treatment for this disease which has a high unmet clinical need. Pancreatic cancer has one of the lowest cancer survival rates with 85 percent to 90 percent of patients being diagnosed with the inoperable form of the disease.

The primary objective of the six month clinical study is to determine the safety of the image guided implantation of BrachySil. Efficacy, as determined by Computerized Tomography scanning of the tumor size and overall survival, will be secondary endpoints. The trial is being conducted in both Europe and Asia with a second clinical center at the Singapore General Hospital and the National Cancer Center Singapore. The findings will provide a platform for further multicenter efficacy and safety trials.

Pancreatic cancer is the second clinical indication for BrachySil, currently in Phase IIb clinical trials for the treatment of inoperable primary liver cancer. A Phase IIa study in inoperable primary liver cancer was completed in July 2005 and showed BrachySil to be well tolerated, according to pSivida. The company said all patients experienced a decrease in the size of their tumors, with some experiencing complete tumor regression.

Oct. 9, 2006 — Alcatel Micro Machining Systems, an Annecy, France, supplier of deep silicon etching equipment (DRIE) for MEMS and 3D Semiconductors, announced that it has received a multi-million dollar order from Xintec Inc. in Taiwan for its new AMS 200 “I-Productivity” production tool for advanced Wafer Level Chip Size Packaging (WLCSP) technology.

Xintec, which is manufacturing high quality IC Packaging products, selected the Alcatel AMS 200 “I-Productivity” for multiple applications including a unique glass-silicon sandwich packages delivering superior optical performance for CMOS image sensors.

The new Alcatel AMS 200 “I-Productivity” DRIE tool was introduced in April 2006. The optimization of the Bosch process parameters have shown ultra high Silicon Etch Rate up to 32 micrometers per minute, lower etch drift, extended cleaning frequency, limited edge exclusion with unrivaled uniformity and repeatability leading to excellent process yields.

Alcatel Micro Machining Systems (AMMS) is a subsidiary of Alcatel Vacuum Technology France located in Annecy, France. AMMS is specialized in designing, manufacturing, marketing and servicing deep plasma etching systems ( DRIE ) for the fabrication of Micro Electro Mechanical Systems and 3D Semiconductors. Its main application markets are the telecommunications, automotive, aerospace, computer peripherals, biomedical industries, power devices and wafer level packaging.

Xintec Inc.’s principal activities are provision of advanced Wafer-Level Chip Size Packaging (CSP) technology and other wafer extended process. Products include unique glass-silicon sandwich packages delivering superior optical performance for CMOS and CCD image sensors. The company exports its products to Asia, Europe, North America and other countries.

Oct. 9, 2006 — U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Samuel W. Bodman announced that Sandia National Laboratories is the new home of the National Laboratory Center for Solid-State Lighting Research and Development.

Sandia will conduct solid-state lighting research and coordinate related research efforts at several other national laboratories.

DOE will provide funding of $5 million for seven research projects in solid-state lighting, including $2.6 million for four Sandia projects, Bodman said. The funding comes from DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

Sandia is a National Nuclear Security Administration laboratory.

“The research will be conducted at the new nanotechnology centers at our national laboratories,” Bodman said in a prepared statement, including the just dedicated Sandia/Los Alamos Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies (CINT). “This is part of nearly $20 million we are committing this year to support research and development efforts in this rapidly emerging technology.”

Bodman laid out the case for investment in solid-state lighting R&D, noting that 18 percent of all US energy generated – valued at some $55 billion – goes to lighting homes, offices, and factories.

Oct. 9, 2006 — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will be holding a public meeting on nanotechnology as it relates to FDA-regulated products on Tuesday in Bethesda, Md.

The purpose of the meeting, according to FDA documents, is to “help FDA further its understanding of developments in nanotechnology materials that pertain to FDA-regulated products.”

Specifically, “FDA is interested in learning about the kinds of new nanotechnology material products under development in the areas of foods (including dietary supplements), food and color additives, animal feeds, cosmetics, drugs and biologics, and medical devices.”

It also hopes to learn whether there are new or emerging scientific issues that should be brought to FDA’s attention.

Additional information can be found on the FDA’s web site.

Oct. 9, 2006 — Boston University announced that Thomas Bifano, a professor in its College of Engineering, has been named director of the Boston University Photonics Center. Bifano has served as the center’s interim director since January, when founding director Donald Fraser retired.

As director, Bifano said he plans to further strengthen the center’s position as an educational resource for BU students and researchers and as a national center of excellence in photonics scholarship.

“My focus will be on integrating the four missions of the Photonics Center: academic scholarship, commercial incubation, defense and government-sponsored photonics technology development, and education for Boston University students,” said Bifano in a prepared statement. “I will work toward creating a shared vision and mutual support among these missions, with the goal of enhancing our reputation in this exciting field.”

University commitments to academic scholarship in photonics include supported purchase and maintenance of shared facilities, such as an optical fiber draw tower, an optical processing facility, a sophisticated optical metrology laboratory and an integrated optoelectronics packaging laboratory.

In addition to his position at the Photonics Center, Bifano is a professor (and past department chair) in the Manufacturing Engineering Department and in the Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering Department. His research focuses on the design and manufacturing of MEMS for optical applications and, with his students, he recently engineered a new class of deformable mirror systems that improve resolution in advanced telescopes, microscopes and ophthalmoscopes. He is also a faculty member at the Fraunhofer Center for Manufacturing Innovation in Brookline, Mass.

The BU Photonics Center develops advanced prototype photonic systems for commercial and defense applications. Research conducted at the center includes blue light laser materials, quantum cryptography, subsurface imaging, adaptive optics, micro-optoelectromechanical systems (MOEMS), high-speed photodetectors, nanophotonic devices and biophotonic sensing.

Oct. 6, 2006 — STMicroelectronics, a leading supplier of MEMS devices, introduced the first two devices in its new family of low-g linear accelerometers, distinguished by small form factor and low power consumption. The LIS302 sensors are intended to meet the growing demand for smart functionality, such as hard-disk drive protection and motion-controlled operation, in mobile phones, digital audio players, and laptops.

Developed in-house, the 3x5x0.9mm plastic package meets the space and weight constraints in mobile phones and other portable electronic devices. The new accelerometers deliver high performance at low power consumption (1mW) and are designed to provide very high immunity to vibration and shock survivability up to 10,000g.

ST’s LIS302DL features a standard SPI/I2C digital interface and two independent programmable interrupt signals. The company says the two separate signals make it possible to monitor the end device for ‘free fall’ and ‘high-g motion’ states at the same time. Alternatively, both signals can be used for either state at two different thresholds, for example to distinguish between free fall and rolling.

The second device, the analog-output LIS302ALB sensor provides separated acceleration values for all three (x, y, z) axes, as well as a multiplexed signal. The embedded 3-to-1 multiplexer saves costs and space on the board, as well providing other benefits.

Oct. 6, 2006 — John E. Denzel has resigned as president and chief operating officer of Ultratech Inc. Arthur W. Zafiropoulo, the firm’s chairman and chief executive officer, has assumed the responsibilities previously performed by Denzel.

Denzel will continue with the company for a period of time reporting to Zafiropoulo. San Jose, California-based Ultratech supplies lithography and laser-processing systems used to manufacture semiconductors and nanotechnology devices.

Oct. 6, 2006 — Lumera Corp., a Bothell, Wash., provider of light applied nanotechnology, announced an expanded collaboration agreement with the Institute for Systems Biology, a non-profit research institute dedicated to the study and application of systems biology. The revised collaboration agreement will focus on detection methods for an array of diagnostic biomarkers aimed at various types of cancer.

The announcement extends an agreement between Lumera and the institute announced in February of 2005. ISB was the first academic institution to test Lumera’s ProteomicProcessor.

Since February of 2005, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Institute of Proteomics, Baylor University and the Medical University of South Carolina have joined the institute in beta testing Lumera’s ProteomicProcessor. Lumera says the instrument has evolved as a result of their feedback and the company expects to launch a refined commercial ProteomicProcessor product in January.