Abstract: The invention seeks to permit evaluation of edge portion of like inclined surfaces of wafer with high accuracy without the conventional destruction process based on the selective etching process but with the contact-free, non-destructive and high accuracy optical acoustical process. To this end, the invention features determination of residual damages as crystal damages caused to wafer edge in an optical acoustical process, which comprises the steps of causing a measurement probe to face each of three exciting laser beam irradiation points on upper and lower inclined surfaces and at an accurate end of an edge portion of a semiconductor wafer, and determining a thermal response induced by the exciting laser beam by a laser interference process.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for monitoring and controlling deposition of metal, insulating compounds or other compounds on a substrate by sputtering techniques includes maintaining pulsed, constant, direct current power to the target, sensing the voltage of the target material used in the process, simultaneously rapidly sensing the partial pressure of the reactive gas, and simultaneously biasing the substrate to activate the reactive gas or otherwise energizing the reactive gas in the vicinity of the substrate. Low temperature coating (eg., below 550.degree. C.) of compounds such as alumina is effected by introduction of an extra energy source such as a radio frequency coil to the sputtering system to enhance the ionization potential of the positive ions. The asymmetric direct current pulsed magnetron power source is coupled to the cathode, as well as the substrate to be coated.

Abstract: Thermally sprayed coatings made from carbides of metals having greater carbon affinity than Cr in the presence of free carbon, or thermally sprayed coatings made from carbides of metals having smaller carbon affinity than Cr are heat treated in a chromium halide containing atmosphere which also contains hydrogen gas, whereby activated metallic Cr is precipitated in a fine particulate form, which is allowed to act on the thermally sprayed coatings, whereupon a Cr.sub.23 C.sub.6 -form carbide is created not only on the coating surface but also in its interior, particularly within pores, to form a modified layer, thereby compositing the thermally sprayed coatings.

Abstract: To accurately correct the deformation component of a moving mirror on a wafer stage measure the curving data of the moving mirrors prior to the installation onto the wafer stage and store the data as a function of the distance from one end of the mirror. Then, measure the discrete curving error data of the moving mirrors after installation onto the wafer stage at every distance, d, using two laser interferometers arranged in parallel at a distance, d. Store the measurement results in the memory. Finally, a main controller creates a continuous curving error data of the moving mirror after installation onto the wafer stage based on the relationship between curving data and curving error data of the moving mirror before and after installation onto the above wafer stage to use it as the correction data.

Abstract: According to a method of manufacturing a semiconductor package of the present invention, a plurality of leads and a large number of minute convex portions are respectively formed by plating on a surface of a metal base and in an outer peripheral area of the leads thereon. An insulative film for holding each of the leads is formed. A solder resist film is formed selectively on a portion including the outer peripheral area having the minute convex portions thereon. A projecting electrode is formed on an outer lead portion of each of the leads through an opening of the solder resist film on an outer lead portion of each of the leads. The metal base is selectively removed except a joint portion thereof on an outer periphery to separate the respective leads. Inner lead portions of the leads and a semiconductor chip are jointed together. The joint portion of the metal base is cut off.

Abstract: An oblique incidence interferometer capable of fringe scanning by use of a fringe scan drive association with a first or second diffraction grating member of the interferometer to drive the associated grating member step by step over a micrometric distance in a direction perpendicular to a path of light in travel in a straightforward direction. Laser light from a light source 20 is diffracted into a zero order diffraction wave L1 in travel in a straightforward direction and a +1 order diffraction wave L2 by a first diffraction grating member 26 of a grating assembly 41. The grating assembly 41 is vertically movably supported on a surface plate 42 by a pair of level support members 43 each having a stratified leaf spring structure. The grating assembly 41 sits on a piezoelectric actuator 45 which serves as a fringe scan drive for driving the first diffraction grating member 26 over a micrometric distance in the vertical direction.

Abstract: A semiconductor package has a wiring circuit containing a conductive terminal formed on a first face of a substrate and a flat external connecting terminal electrically connected to the wiring circuit formed on a second face. An electrode pad is formed on a first face of a semiconductor chip. This semiconductor chip is mounted on the substrate with its first face down to oppose the first face of the substrate. A ball bump as a protruded electrode formed on the conductive terminal of the substrate and a ball bump as a protruded electrode formed on the electrode pad of the semiconductor chip are connected by solid phase diffusion. And, a sealing resin layer is formed in the space between the substrate and the semiconductor chip opposed to each other with a second face of the semiconductor chip exposed.

Abstract: A II-VI group compound semiconductor device having a p-type Zn.sub.x Mg.sub.1-x S.sub.y Se.sub.1-y (0.ltoreq.x.ltoreq.1, 0.ltoreq.y.ltoreq.1) semiconductor layer, on which an electrode layer is formed with at least metallic nitride layer lying between the semiconductor layer and the electrode layer.

Abstract: A layer construction with an organic layer and a transparent cover layer which covers the organic layer and which is harder than the organic layer, and a process for producing such a layer construction in which the cover layer is deposited on the surface of the organic layer from a precursor material present in the gas phase. In order to improve the optical quality of the layer construction, the cover layer, at least in a transition region between the organic layer and the cover layer, is deposited with an index of refraction which differs by a maximum of 20%, in particular by a maximum of 10%, from the index of refraction of the underlying organic layer.

Abstract: A method of fabricating a multi-chip package including an aluminum silicon substrate with an aluminum nitride layer thereon forming an electrically insulated surface and aluminum heat conductive areas positioned on the insulated surface. Conductors on the surface of the substrate defining mounting areas and external connections with each mounting area positioned adjacent an associated one of the heat conductive areas and a semiconductor chip mounted in each mounting area. Heat conductive elements connected to the rear surface of each chip and to the associated one of the plurality of heat conductive areas, and each chip encapsulated with reworkable encapsulant.

Abstract: Based upon the equation, BIAS.sub.G .alpha. (I.sub.DE -I.sub.COIL).multidot.(V.sub.DE -V.sub.OFF), where BIAS.sub.G is the bias of a multi-oscillator ring-laser gyroscope (14) as induced by gain medium dispersion effects, I.sub.DE is the proper operating coil current, I.sub.COIL is the actual coil current, V.sub.DE is the proper path length control operating voltage and V.sub.OFF is the actual offset voltage, V.sub.DE is matched by path length control offset voltage and/or I.sub.DE is matched by proper coil current, to produce a zero induced BIAS.sub.G. Matching, through dispersion equalization (DE), is effected by use of clockwise (C) and anticlockwise (A) (or counterclockwise) beams traversing paths with a frame (12). The beams are directed to photodetectors (52, 54) and power meters (56, 58).

Abstract: A coated turning insert particularly useful for turning of forged components of stainless steel low alloyed steel. The insert is characterized by a WC-Co cemented carbide body having a highly W-alloyed Co-binder phase and a coating including an innermost layer of TiC.sub.x N.sub.y O.sub.z with columnar grains and a top layer of fine grained .kappa.-Al.sub.2 O.sub.3.

Abstract: A process for fabricating a composite material such as that having high thermal conductivity and having specific application as a heat sink or heat spreader for high density integrated circuits. The composite material produced by this process has a thermal conductivity between that of diamond and copper, and basically consists of coated diamond particles dispersed in a high conductivity metal, such as copper. The composite material can be fabricated in small or relatively large sizes using inexpensive materials. The process basically consists, for example, of sputter coating diamond powder with several elements, including a carbide forming element and a brazeable material, compacting them into a porous body, and infiltrating the porous body with a suitable braze material, such as copper-silver alloy, thereby producing a dense diamond-copper composite material with a thermal conductivity comparable to synthetic diamond films at a fraction of the cost.

Abstract: The present invention provides a coated article comprising a substrate that can be non-crystalline or crystalline such as a polycrystalline engineering material, having advantageous mechanical properties and a superlattice-type protective composite coating on the substrate. The composite coating comprises a plurality of vapor deposited, ion bombarded, polycrystalline layers of different adjacent compositions formed one atop the other in lamellar manner. The polycrystalline layers have sufficiently thin individual layer thicknesses (e.g. not exceeding about 150 nanometers) and sufficiently distinct and different compositions proximate their interfaces despite being ion bombarded as to constitute superlattice layers that exhibit a collective hardness exceeding the hardness of any individual layer material in homogenous or bulk form.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for achieving high position resolution of a moving stage in a lithographic system utilized for the manufacture of semiconductor integrated circuits. A series of values of the stage position are measured using an interferometric system, and a present position of the stage is estimated using regression analysis applied to a selected number of the series of measured values. The resulting predicted position is of higher resolution than a single stage position measurement of the interferometric system.

Abstract: A semiconductor device according to the present invention includes a substrate made of an electrically insulative material having a relatively high thermal conductivity, a metallic pattern member provided on one major surface of the substrate and having an external terminal portion extending from the substrate, a semiconductor element mounted on the metallic pattern member, a metallic layer provided on the other major surface of the substrate, a heat dissipation plate fixed onto the metallic layer, and a mold body for coating both the substrate mounted with the semiconductor element and the heat dissipation plate so as to expose the external terminal portion.

Abstract: According to the present invention there are provided spectral imaging methods for biological research, medical diagnostics and therapy comprising the steps of (a) preparing a sample to be spectrally imaged; (b) viewing the sample through an optical device, the optical device being optically connected to an imaging spectrometer, the optical device and the imaging spectrometer obtaining a spectrum of each pixel of the sample by: (i) collecting incident light simultaneously from all pixels of the sample using collimating optics; (ii) passing the incident collimated light through an interferometer system having a number of elements, to form an exiting light beam; (iii) passing the exiting light beam through a focusing optical system which focuses the exiting light beam on a detector having a two-dimensional array of detector elements, so that at each instant each of the detector elements is the image of one pixel of the sample, so that the real image of the sample is stationary on the plane of the detector array

Abstract: The present invention is directed to a heterodyne interferometer arrangement with tunable laser light sources for absolute distance measurement. The phase angle changes which occur in the synthetic interference signals when varying the laser frequencies are recorded and evaluated. The arrangement also enables error-free distance measurement in the event of a change in the mathematical sign of the phase changes due to frequency jitter.

Abstract: A temporary package for testing semiconductor dice, a method for forming the temporary package and a method for testing dice using the temporary package are provided. The temporary package includes hard-metal ball contacts arranged in a dense grid pattern, such as a ball grid array. The dense grid pattern allows the temporary package to include a large number of ball contacts (e.g., 50 to 1000 or more) to permit testing of dice having a large number of bond pads, or dice that require a large number of input/output signals. The ball contacts can be formed of a metal such as nickel, copper or beryllium copper and are adapted to resist wear, deformation and breakage during continued use of the package. For forming the package, a package base can be formed with land pads and the ball contacts can be attached to the land pads by soldering, brazing, welding, or with a conductive adhesive.

Abstract: A method and improved system for automatically and substantially simultaneously focusing and orienting an interferometric optical system, such as an interferometric microscope (25) illuminated by broad-band light, with regard to a surface under test (66), for providing a best focus and orientation of objects to be measured. The optical system (20, 25, 30, 35, 37, 60, 40) includes a pixel array, such as a sparse array (30) onto which an interferogram is imaged. The pixel array (30) is scanned (20, 25) for detecting a peak fringe contrast for the pixels in the array (30) and the scan position at the detected peak fringe contrast for each pixel int he array (30) is saved (40).