Abstract: The invention is directed to a device for regulating the flow of electric current with high dielectric constant gate insulating layer and a source and/or drain forming a Schottky contact or Schottky-like region with a substrate and its fabrication method. In one aspect, the gate insulating layer has a dielectric constant greater than the dielectric constant of silicon. In another aspect, the current regulating device may be a MOSFET device, optionally a planar P-type or N-type MOSFET, having any orientation. In another aspect, the source and/or drain may consist partially or fully of a silicide.

Abstract: The described systems and methods are directed at interactively rendering graphics using precomputed radiance transfer (PRT). A reflectance matrix that represents the reflectance of a particular object to be rendered is determined. Source lighting associated with the object is represented using basis functions. The reflectance matrix is factored into view and light components. A raw transfer matrix is determined based, in part, from the factored reflectance matrix and the source lighting. The raw transfer matrix is partitioned to obtain transfer matrices, which are used to render the object. The described systems and methods are capable of rendering glossy objects with well-defined shadows.

Abstract: A Schottky barrier integrated circuit is disclosed, the circuit having at least one PMOS device or at least one NMOS device, at least one of the PMOS device or NMOS device having metal source-drain contacts forming Schottky barrier or Schottky-like contacts to the semiconductor substrate. The device provides a new distribution of mobile charge carriers in the bulk region of the semiconductor substrate, which improves device and circuit performance by lowering gate capacitance, improving effective carrier mobility {overscore (?)}, reducing noise, reducing gate insulator leakage, reducing hot carrier effect and improving reliability.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for variable source rate sampling in connection with image rendering, which accumulate and resolve over all samples forward mapped to each pixel bin. In accordance with the invention, the textured surface to be rendered is sampled, or oversampled, at a variable rate that reflects variations in frequency among different regions, taking into account any transformation that will be applied to the surface prior to rendering and the view parameters of the display device, thus ensuring that each bin of the rendering process receives at least a predetermined minimum number of samples. A variety of image processing applications are contemplated wherein variable rate source sampling, and accumulation and resolution of forward mapped point samples can be applied, ranging from 3-D graphics applications to applications wherein images recorded in a recording/storage environment are mapped to the arbitrary requirements of a display environment.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for optimizing the geometric stretch of a parametrization scheme. Given an arbitrary mesh, the systems and methods construct a progressive mesh (PM) such that all meshes in the PM sequence share a common texture parametrization. The systems and methods minimize geometric stretch, i.e., small texture distances mapped onto large surface distances, to balance sampling rates over all locations and directions on the surface. The systems and methods also minimize texture deviation, i.e., “slippage” error based on parametric correspondence, to obtain accurate textured mesh approximations. The technique(s) begin by partitioning the mesh into charts using planarity and compactness heuristics. Then, the technique(s) proceed by creating a stretch-minimizing parametrization within each chart, and by resizing the charts based on the resulting stretch. Then, the technique(s) simplify the mesh while respecting the chart boundaries.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for optimizing the geometric stretch of a parametrization scheme. Given an arbitrary mesh, the systems and methods construct a progressive mesh (PM) such that all meshes in the PM sequence share a common texture parametrization. The systems and methods minimize geometric stretch, i.e., small texture distances mapped onto large surface distances, to balance sampling rates over all locations and directions on the surface. The systems and methods also minimize texture deviation, i.e., “slippage” error based on parametric correspondence, to obtain accurate textured mesh approximations. The technique(s) begin by partitioning the mesh into charts using planarity and compactness heuristics. Then, the technique(s) proceed by creating a stretch-minimizing parametrization within each chart, and by resizing the charts based on the resulting stretch. Then, the technique(s) simplify the mesh while respecting the chart boundaries.

Abstract: A hardware-accelerated process of computing radiance transfer coefficients (such as for use in image rendering based on precomputed radiance transfer (PRT) techniques) is re-ordered as compared to previously known PRT precomputations to iterate over a sampling of directions about an object. The hardware-accelerated process uses a set of textures representing positions and normals for a sampling of points over a modeled object. In iterating over the directions, the process computes the depth of the object in a shadow buffer, then computes a texture of the radiance contribution based on the normal and position textures and depth from the shadow buffer. The resulting radiance contribution textures of the iterated directions are accumulated to produce a texture representing the radiance transfer coefficients of the sampled positions. This enables the process to avoid reduction operations, ray tracing and slow read-back path limitations of graphical processing units.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for optimizing the geometric stretch of a parametrization scheme. Given an arbitrary mesh, the systems and methods construct a progressive mesh (PM) such that all meshes in the PM sequence share a common texture parametrization. The systems and methods minimize geometric stretch, i.e., small texture distances mapped onto large surface distances, to balance sampling rates over all locations and directions on the surface. The systems and methods also minimize texture deviation, i.e., “slippage” error based on parametric correspondence, to obtain accurate textured mesh approximations. The technique(s) begin by partitioning the mesh into charts using planarity and compactness heuristics. Then, the technique(s) proceed by creating a stretch-minimizing parametrization within each chart, and by resizing the charts based on the resulting stretch. Then, the technique(s) simplify the mesh while respecting the chart boundaries.

Abstract: Computer graphics image rendering techniques render images modeling transfer at two scales. A macro-scale is coarsely sampled over an object's surface, providing global effects like shadows and interreflections cast from an arm onto a body. A meso-scale is finely sampled over a small patch to provide local texture. Low-order spherical harmonics represent low-frequency lighting dependence for both scales. To render, a coefficient vector representing distant source lighting is first transformed at the macro-scale by a matrix at each vertex of a coarse mesh, resulting in vectors representing a spatially-varying hemisphere of lighting incident to the meso-scale. A radiance transfer texture specifies the meso-scale response to each lighting basis component, and a function of a spatial index and a view direction. A dot product of the macro-scale result vector with the vector looked up from the radiance transfer texture performs the correct shading integral.

Abstract: The present invention is directed to a enhanced Precomputed Radiance Transfer (PRT) system employing an algorithm to compute a PRT signal over a surface mesh and subdividing facets of the mesh to increase the number of surface vertices such that the spatial variation of the transfer signal is resolved sufficiently everywhere on the surface. The method of this system ensures that radiance transfer shading produces colors of sufficient accuracy all over the surface. In certain embodiments, transfer is computed only at surface vertices, although this does result in a certain amount of acceptable aliasing and blurring of surface lighting detail in regions where the tessellation is too coarse. Furthermore, the method comprises a spatial and density sampling techniques that measures the transfer signal to a desirable appropriate resolution while minimizing aliasing. Once computed, the signal is represented as compactly as possible to minimize storage and runtime computation requirements.

Abstract: The present invention is directed to systems and methods for all-frequency relighting by representing low frequencies of lighting with spherical harmonics and approximate the residual high-frequency energy with point lights. One such embodiment renders low-frequencies with a precomputed radiance transfer (PRT) technique (which requires only a moderate amount of precomputation and storage), while the higher-frequencies are rendered with on-the-fly techniques such as shadow maps and shadow volumes. In addition, various embodiments are directed to a systems and methods for decomposing the lighting into harmonics and sets of point lights. Various alternative embodiments are directed to systems and methods for characterizing the types of environments for which the described decomposition is a viable technique in terms of speed (efficiency) versus quality (realism).

Abstract: A MOSFET device and method of fabricating are disclosed. The present invention utilizes Schottky barrier contacts for source and/or drain contact fabrication within the context of a MOSFET device structure to eliminate the requirement for halo/pocket implants and shallow source/drain extensions to control short channel effects. Additionally, the present invention unconditionally eliminates the parasitic bipolar gain associated with MOSFET fabrication, reduces manufacturing costs, tightens control of device performance parameters, and provides for superior device characteristics as compared to the prior art.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for variable source rate sampling in connection with image rendering, which accumulate and resolve over all samples forward mapped to each pixel bin. In accordance with the invention, the textured surface to be rendered is sampled, or oversampled, at a variable rate that reflects variations in frequency among different regions, taking into account any transformation that will be applied to the surface prior to rendering and the view parameters of the display device, thus ensuring that each bin of the rendering process receives at least a predetermined minimum number of samples. In one embodiment, the sampling rate is variably set such that each bin is assured to have at least one sample point. In another embodiment, a tiling approach to division of the surface is utilized.

Abstract: Real-time processing includes per-point transfer matrices forming a high-dimensional surface signal that is compressed using clustered principal component analysis (CPCA). CPCA partitions multiple samples into fewer clusters, each cluster approximating the signal as an affine subspace. Further, source radiance is input to a processor, which approximates source radiance using spherical harmonic basis to produce a set of source radiance coefficients. A graphics processing unit (GPU) processes the source radiance coefficients through the transfer matrix model for each cluster. The result of such processing is the exit radiance, which parameterizes the radiance leaving the surface of the object at each point, thus producing the shading for each point of the virtual object in real time.

Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for optimizing the geometric stretch of a parametrization scheme. Given an arbitrary mesh, the systems and methods construct a progressive mesh (PM) such that all meshes in the PM sequence share a common texture parametrization. The systems and methods minimize geometric stretch, i.e., small texture distances mapped onto large surface distances, to balance sampling rates over all locations and directions on the surface. The systems and methods also minimize texture deviation, i.e., “slippage” error based on parametric correspondence, to obtain accurate textured mesh approximations. The technique(s) begin by partitioning the mesh into charts using planarity and compactness heuristics. Then, the technique(s) proceed by creating a stretch-minimizing parametrization within each chart, and by resizing the charts based on the resulting stretch. Then, the technique(s) simplify the mesh while respecting the chart boundaries.

Abstract: The present invention is a field effect transistor having a strained semiconductor substrate and Schottky-barrier source and drain electrodes, and a method for making the transistor. The bulk charge carrier transport characteristic of the Schottky barrier field effect transistor minimizes carrier surface scattering, which enables the strained substrate to provide improved power and speed performance characteristics in this device, as compared to conventional devices.

Abstract: A computing system group processing architecture that facilitates asymmetric processing at different computing nodes within a group or cluster of nodes. Nodes within a group are assigned to subgroups. Each node in a subgroup performs similar processing, but nodes in different subgroups are able to perform different processing for the same group level protocol. All nodes monitor processing completion votes that are cast by all nodes, and node in subgroups that finish processing before other subgroups synchronize to the processing of those other subgroups by casting dummy votes during vote rounds of other subgroups that are still processing their subgroup protocol.

Abstract: A computing node that functions as a member within a computing system group, such as a cluster, that has a status allowing receipt of group messages even though the node is not an active member of the cluster. The node is able to function as a primary member or as a backup member that controls redundant resources to be utilized in case of a failure. The computing node is able to have one of two status values, an “Active” status and an “Ineligible” status. Members that are able to function as a primary member have an “Active” status assigned, and a member that is not configured or otherwise eligible to perform as a primary member is assigned an “Ineligible” status. Members with an Ineligible status receive all group messages and therefore are able to become configured and eligible to become a primary member.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a system processes resource description framework (RDF) data. The system comprises a plurality of RDF schemas defining RDF elements and relationships between ones of the RDF elements, an RDF data store for storing RDF triples that conform to the plurality of RDF schemas, and an RDF database service for receiving database transactions to add RDF triples to the RDF data store, wherein the RDF database service is operable to validate an RDF triple against the plurality of RDF schemas before populating the RDF triple into the RDF data store.

Abstract: A method for invoking a WebDAV method via a communication protocol that does not natively support WebDAV methods is provided. The method comprises receiving a request for a WebDAV method via a communication protocol that does not natively support WebDAV. The method further comprises invoking the requested WebDAV method, responsive to receiving the request.