Abstract: An image encoder includes a tone mapper, an enhancement layer and an image file generator. The tone mapper is used to generate a base image according to an enhanced image and red green blue (RGB) gains. The RGB gains are set close to or the same as each other. The enhancement layer is used to generate a tone curve and/or a gain map of the base image and the enhanced image according to the tone mapper and/or a group including the base image and the enhanced image. The image file generator is used to generate an image file according to the base image and at least one member of a group including the tone curve and the gain map.

Abstract: A titanium precursor is used to selectively form a titanium silicide (TiSix) layer in a semiconductor device. A plasma-based deposition operation is performed in which the titanium precursor is provided into an opening, and a reactant gas and a plasma are used to cause silicon to diffuse to a top surface of a transistor structure. The diffusion of silicon results in the formation of a silicon-rich surface of the transistor structure, which increases the selectivity of the titanium silicide formation relative to other materials of the semiconductor device. The titanium precursor reacts with the silicon-rich surface to form the titanium silicide layer. The selective titanium silicide layer formation results in the formation of a titanium silicon nitride (TiSixNy) on the sidewalls in the opening, which enables a conductive structure such as a metal source/drain contact to be formed in the opening without the addition of another barrier layer.

Abstract: A system and method of adaptively testing a hearing function performs a hearing test including outputting a sound of a tested word chosen from a selected one of the word lists, receiving an input of a patient in response to the outputted sound, and determining whether the input matches with the tested word. The hearing test is repeated until a testing end condition is satisfied, wherein the selected one of the word lists in a next iteration of the hearing test has a next higher level of difficulty when the input matches with the tested word in a previous iteration of the hearing test, and the selected one of the word lists in the next iteration of the hearing test has a next lower level of difficulty when the input does not match with the tested word in the previous iteration of the hearing test.