Abstract: At least one modified strain region having a damage depth between 0.1 and 2 microns in a disk drive slider is created by implantation with ions, electrons or neutral atoms. The modified strain region induces a deformation of the disk drive slider. The nature and extent of this deformation is determined by the interaction between the slider and the modified strain region.

Abstract: A magnetoresistive (MR) sensor can be shaped using ion beam irradiation and/or implantation through a mask introduced between a MR structure and an ion source. The mask covers selected portions of the MR structure to define the track width of the sensor. Ion irradiation and/or implantation reduces the magnetoresistance of the unmasked portions while leaving the masked portion substantially unaltered. The mask can be a photoresist mask, an electron beam resist mask, or a stencil mask. Alternatively the mask may be part of a projection ion beam system. Track width resolution is determined at the mask production step. The edges of the sensor can be defined by a highly collimated ion beam producing an extremely straight transition edge, which reduces sensor noise and improves sensor track width control. Improved hard bias layers that directly abut the sensor may be used to achieve a suitable stability. A variety of longitudinal bias schemes are compatible with ion beam patterning.

Abstract: The present invention is directed towards a suspension for use with heads that are positioned upstream of the actuator arm in a disk drive. The suspension includes a motion limiter to limit displacement both away from the load beam and towards the flexure proximal end. The suspension also includes traces with connections located on the proximal end of the gimbaled region of the flexure for making electrical contact with a head on a slider.

Abstract: The present invention is directed towards a channel power monitor for monitoring channel power levels for each of N signal channels. The value of each channel power level is designated as p(&lgr;i), where &lgr;i is a channel parameter that characterizes each channel. An embodiment of the invention includes a variable channel attenuator having M attenuation profiles where M≧N, and where a k-th attenuation profile is characterized as a function of the channel parameter &lgr;i by Ak(&lgr;i). This embodiment also includes a detector for measuring a k-th integrated attenuated power level, the value of which is represented by Pk. An analysis unit receives all of the values Pk of the integrated attenuated power levels and thereupon derives the values p(&lgr;i) of the channel power levels by solving a set of linear equations.

Abstract: The present invention provides a surgical probe having a tip for use in liquid media, wherein the tip has a concave body portion and a distal portion. The concave body portion of the tip is positioned immediately adjacent the distal portion such that the liquid jet resulting from the collapse of the cavitation bubble can be substantially reduced. Also disclosed is a surgical probe having a tip and an obstacle for use in liquid media, wherein the tip has a body portion and a distal portion. The obstacle is mounted on the outside of the probe such that the liquid jet resulting from the collapse of the cavitation bubble can be substantially reduced. The obstacle can also be a pick positioned on one side of the probe and in front of the probe.

Abstract: A method for tuning nonlinear optical frequency converters including devices such as optical parametric amplifiers and optical parametric oscillators through degeneracy. The nonlinear conversion process is driven by a pump beam at an original pump wavelength and the tuning is accomplished by setting a passband around a first wavelength generated by the optical frequency converter and thereby generating a passband image around a second wavelength. Once the passband and passband image are within a critical range the original pump wavelength is adjusted to an adjusted pump wavelength and tuning continues by moving the passband which the adjusted pump wavelength is either held constant or further adjusted. In particular, the passband can now be moved through the resonant wavelength which corresponds to a point of degeneracy at the original pump wavelength.

Abstract: A slider of a magnetic hard disk drive has one or more electric lapping guides in immediate proximity to the read/write stack of the slider. The lapping guides remain part of the slider during its operation. In the preferred embodiment, two essentially identical lapping guides are symmetrically placed on a slider back. One write head terminal is utilized to conductively access the two lapping guides on one side such that only one additional terminal has to be placed on the slider back together with corresponding leads. The placement of lapping guides on the slider back face provides for an economic lapping of individual sliders with increased precision and reliability regardless of any lapping plane skew.

Abstract: A quantum-dot photon turnstile device is capable of producing a stream of regulated and directed single pairs of photons with opposite circular polarizations. This device operates by injecting pairs of electrons and holes, alternately, into a single quantum dot, where they combine to form photons. The device will efficiently and reliably produce a directed beam of such photons at regular time intervals. It will be able to operate at high frequency and at high temperature. Such a stream of regulated photon pairs will be useful in quantum cryptography, quantum computing, low-power optical communications, as a light standard, and in many other areas of technology and fundamental science.

Abstract: For a number of users is a system provided to create, edit, replay and view documents of free hand drawn sketches. The system captures the creation process together with verbal and/or visual information provided by each user and automatically correlates them for a later synchronized replay. The system provides a number of tools and features, mainly to: combine the sketching activity with existing images, to selectively retrieve media information correlated to individual sketch entities and to quasi simultaneously collaborate at a common document. The system architecture can by adjusted to various parameters in the communication infrastructure. The system may be implemented in any software program, a web based service, a web browser, an operating system for computers and/or communication devices.

Abstract: An exchange-coupled magnetic structure of a cobalt-ferrite layer adjacent a magnetic metal layer is used in magnetorestive sensors, such as spin valves or tunnel junction valves. The exchange-coupled magnetic structure is used in a pinning structure pinning the magnetization of a ferromagnetic pinned layer, or in an AP pinned layer. A low coercivity ferrite may be used in an AP free layer. Cobalt-ferrite layers may be formed by co-sputtering of Co and Fe in an oxygen/argon gas mixture, or by sputtering of a CoFe2 composition target in an oxygen/argon gas mixture. Alternatively, the cobalt-ferrite layer may be formed by evaporation of Co and Fe from an alloy source or separate sources along with a flux of oxygen atoms from a RF oxygen atom beam source. Magnetoresistive sensors including cobalt-ferrite layers have small read gaps and produce large signals with high efficiency.

Abstract: This invention provides an angled-dual-axis confocal scanning microscope comprising a fiber-coupled, angled-dual-axis confocal scanning head and a vertical scanning unit. The angled-dual-axis confocal scanning head is configured such that an illumination beam and an observation beam intersect optimally at an angle &thgr; within an object and the scanning is achieved by pivoting the illumination and observation beams using a single scanning element, thereby producing an arc-line scan. The vertical scanning unit causes the angled-dual-axis confocal scanning head to move towards or away from the object.

Abstract: A tunable light source equipped with an optical parametric amplifier (OPA) placed in a cavity for performing an optical parametric oscillation (OPO) driven by a pump beam at a pump frequency selected within a certain range such that the OPO is driven near degeneracy. An adjustment mechanism adjusts the pump frequency within a wavelength tuning range to select a gain spectrum of the OPO and a spectral control mechanism sets a resonant frequency of the cavity within that gain spectrum. Thus, only one of the idler and signal beams within the passband set by the narrowband tuner is supported inside the cavity. Other nonlinear frequency conversion operations can also be performed within the cavity in conjunction with the OPO. The light source can be operated in cw, near-cw and pulsed operation modes as a broadly tunable narrowband source covering a wavelength window of 250 nm.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method for inferring optical parameters of a sample in a predictive spectral range by use of the known values of the optical parameters in a predetermined measurement spectral range. The method of the present invention capitalizes on the Forouhi-Bloomer dispersion equations for the optical constants n and k.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for temperature-independent determination of a concentration of a probe gas in a sample over a selected temperature range between a low temperature TL corresponding to a lowest temperature expected or found in the sample and a high temperature TH corresponding to a highest temperature expected or found in the sample. In accordance with the method, a probe temperature function of the probe gas is determined over the temperature range using a first spectroscopic technique. Then, a second spectroscopic technique is selected, a reference gas is identified and a reference temperature function of the reference gas is determined using the second spectroscopic technique over the temperature range. In particular, the reference gas is identified such that a ratio of the probe temperature function and the reference temperature function is substantially constant over the temperature range.

Abstract: A method and wireless communication system for identifying one or more undesired signals at a multiple input receive unit receiving a desired signal or several desired signals and the undesired signal or signals. A separability condition between the desired signal and undesired signal is provided to enable that the undesired signal can be identified at the multiple input receive unit. The separability condition includes the use of substantially coherent reception at the receive unit and the use of separable training patterns for the desired and undesired signals. Zero tones are included in desired and undesired signals to further enhance signal separability. Signal training at the receive unit is used to derive the corresponding channel matrices for the interferers and mitigate their effects.

Abstract: This invention provides an angled-dual-axis optical coherence scanning microscope comprising a fiber-coupled, high-speed angled-dual-axis confocal scanning head and a vertical scanning unit. The angled-dual-axis confocal scanning head is configured such that an illumination beam and an observation beam intersect optimally at an angle &thgr; within an object and the scanning is achieved by pivoting the illumination and observation beams jointly using a high-speed scanning element. The vertical scanning unit causes the angled-dual-axis confocal scanning head to move towards or away from the object, thereby yielding a vertical cross-section scan of the object, while keeping the optical path lengths of the illumination and observation beams unchanged. By incorporating MEMS scanning mirrors and fiber-optic components, the angled-dual-axis optical coherence scanning microscope of the present invention can be miniaturized to provide a particularly powerful tool for in vivo medical imaging applications.

Abstract: An optical test cable has a number of independent optical fibers bundled in a cable between two break out ends beyond which the individual fiber strings extend color coded with optical connectors installed on their ends. The optical connectors are covered with dust caps. During a measurement cycle, a technician may alternately use the independent fibers to couple a light-metering device to tested optical connectors. Providing a number of fibers allows the technician to change from one fiber to the next rather than having to polish the output face of the cable's optical connector at the testing site. The optical connectors at one end of the test cable are configured for attaching to the metering device. The optical connectors at the opposing end are either configured for attaching to a number of adapters or for direct attaching to varying standards the tested optical connectors.

Abstract: A method for designing an integrated circuit die having bi-directional I/O buffers shared by multiple designs therein. The multi-design integrated circuit die is designed by combining netlists, each of which represents a complete design, and pin-pad assignment lists for the individual designs into a top-level consolidated netlist or multi-design netlist with its own consolidated pin-pad assignment. Data for the top-level consolidated design, including stimulus vectors and response vectors, are used to generate a semiconductor test program to test the integrated circuit die. Consolidation of netlist, pin-pad assignments and vectors are accomplished using design automation software and techniques. The top-level consolidated design data may include configuration information externally applied to the consolidated design.

Abstract: A system employing a solid state light source for writing Bragg gratings in fibers and for other photolithographic applications. The solid state light source preferably has a passively Q-switched laser, a fiber amplifier and two or more nonlinear conversion elements for delivering a pulsed exposure beam at an exposure wavelength in the UV wavelength range. The exposure beam is generated in a single pass through the nonlinear elements, for example by cascaded second harmonic generation yielding the fourth harmonic. The system is effective at covering the UV wavelengths from 200 nm to 330 nm and particularly effective at producing an exposure wavelength between 240 and 250 nm at average power levels of 500 milliWatts and more within a photosensitive range of fiber cores in which Bragg gratings are to be written.

Abstract: A magnetic layer structure with a layer of cobalt-chromium-platinum-boron composite alloy containing 10% to 20% B in the magnetic layer. The useful magnetic properties of the magnetic layer structure are achieved by the incorporation of a nucleation layer prior to the deposition of the magnetic layer. The resultant magnetic layer structures have coercivity Hc values in between 2,000 and 5,000 Oe, grain sizes between 30 and 200 Angstroms and anisotropic crystallographic orientation with the c-axis of the cobalt-chromium-platinum-boron in the plane of the medium. These magnetic layer structures are suitable for magnetic data storage devices including magnetic disks.