Abstract: Devices and method for forming a switch including a heater layer including a first heater pad, a second heater pad, and a heater line connecting the first heater pad and the second heater pad, a phase change material (PCM) layer positioned in a same vertical plane as the heater line, and a floating spreader layer including a first portion positioned in the same vertical plane as the heater line and the PCM layer, in which the first portion has a first width that is less than or equal to a distance between proximate sidewalls of the first heater pad and the second heater pad.

Abstract: A package structure is provided. The package structure includes a through substrate via structure, a first stacked die package structure, an underfill layer, and a package layer. The through substrate via structure is formed over a substrate. The first stacked die package structure is over the through substrate via structure, wherein the first stacked die package structure comprises a plurality of memory dies. The underfill layer is over the first stacked die package structure. the package layer is over the underfill layer, wherein the package layer has a protruding portion that extends below a top surface of the through substrate via structure.

Abstract: A system and computer-implemented method are provided for manufacturing a semiconductor electronic device. An assembler receives a jig and a boat supporting a die. The assembler includes a separator that separates the jig into a first jig portion and a second jig portion and a loader that positions the boat between the first jig portion and the second jig portion. A robot receives an assembly prepared by the assembler and manipulates a locking system that fixes an alignment of the boat relative to the first jig portion and the second jig portion to form a locked assembly. A process chamber receives the locked assembly and subjects the locked assembly to a fabrication operation.

Abstract: A control circuit for controlling a power supply circuit to provide power to a system device which includes a communication circuit includes: a pulse width modulation (PWM) controller configured to switch a transformer of the power supply circuit to generate a first output voltage; and a switched capacitor converter configured to generate a second output voltage according to the first output voltage. The second output voltage provides power to the communication circuit, wherein the communication circuit generates a power saving signal to control the PWM controller and the switched capacitor converter. When the power saving signal is enabled, the first output voltage is decreased and a duty ratio of the switched capacitor converter is increased.

Abstract: An electronic circuit includes a first switched capacitor circuit and a second switched capacitor circuit. The first switched capacitor circuit charges and discharges a first flying capacitor to power a load. The second switched capacitor charges and discharges a second flying capacitor to power the load. When the first switched capacitor operates in a dead time, the second switched capacitor powers the load with the second flying capacitor.

Abstract: A semiconductor device structure, along with methods of forming such, are described. The structure includes a substrate having one or more devices formed thereon, one or more bonding pads disposed over the substrate, and a first passivation layer disposed over the one or more bonding pads. The first passivation layer includes a first passivation sublayer having a first dielectric material, a second passivation sublayer disposed over the first passivation sublayer, and the second passivation sublayer has a second dielectric material different from the first dielectric material. The first passivation layer further includes a third passivation sublayer disposed over the second passivation sublayer, and the third passivation sublayer has a third dielectric material different from the second dielectric material. At least two of the first, second, and third passivation sublayers each includes a nitride.

Abstract: A global index value is generated for selecting a global reshaping function for an input image of a relatively low dynamic range using luma codewords in the input image. Image filtering is applied to the input image to generate a filtered image. The filtered values of the filtered image provide a measure of local brightness levels in the input image. Local index values are generated for selecting specific local reshaping functions for the input image using the global index value and the filtered values of the filtered image. A reshaped image of a relatively high dynamic range is generated by reshaping the input image with the specific local reshaping functions selected using the local index values.

Abstract: A switched capacitor converter includes plural switch units. The switch units are configured to switch a coupling relationship of a capacitor between a first power and a second power, wherein at least one of the switch units includes a switch circuit. The switch circuit includes a first switch, a second switch, and a switch driving circuit, wherein the conduction resistance of the first switch is greater than the conduction resistance of the second switch, and the parasitic capacitance of the first switch is less than the parasitic capacitance of the second switch. The switch driving circuit turns on the first switch before the second switch is turned on and/or turns off the first switch after the second switch is turned off, such that the switching loss of the switch circuit is less than a predetermined target value.

Abstract: A power conversion circuit includes an N-level PWM power converter and a switching capacitor power converter. The N-level PWM power converter includes shared switches shared with the switching capacitor power converter, and PWM switches. In an N-level PWM mode, the shared switches and the PWM switches periodically switch an inductor and a capacitor, to execute power conversion between a first power and a second power by N-level PWM switching operation. The switching capacitor power converter includes the shared switches and auxiliary switches. In a capacitive conversion mode, the shared switches and the auxiliary switches periodically switch the capacitor, to execute power conversion between the first power and the second power by capacitive power conversion operation. In the capacitive conversion mode, a portion of the plural PWM switches are always OFF such that one end of the inductor is floating.

Abstract: In a cloud-based system for encoding high dynamic range (HDR) video, each node receives a video segment and bumper frames. Each segment is subdivided into primary scenes and secondary scenes to derive scene-based forward reshaping functions that minimize the amount of reshaping-related metadata when coding the video segment, while maintaining temporal continuity among scenes processed by multiple nodes. Methods to generate scene-based forward and backward reshaping functions to optimize video coding and improve the coding efficiency of reshaping-related metadata are also examined.

Abstract: A switched capacitor converter circuit includes: plural capacitors and plural switches which switch the connections of the plural capacitors periodically. In a first period, the plural switches control a first capacitor to be electrically connected between a first power and a second power, and control a second capacitor and a third capacitor to be electrically connected in series between the second power and a ground level. In a second period, the plural switches control the first capacitor and the second capacitor to be electrically connected in series between the second power and the ground, and control the third capacitor and the second capacitor to be electrically connected in parallel with the second power, thereby a second current of the second power is 4 times of a first current of the first power.

Abstract: A semiconductor device structure, along with methods of forming such, are described. The structure includes a substrate having one or more devices formed thereon, one or more bonding pads disposed over the substrate, and a first passivation layer disposed over the one or more bonding pads. The first passivation layer includes a first passivation sublayer having a first dielectric material, a second passivation sublayer disposed over the first passivation sublayer, and the second passivation sublayer has a second dielectric material different from the first dielectric material. The first passivation layer further includes a third passivation sublayer disposed over the second passivation sublayer, and the third passivation sublayer has a third dielectric material different from the second dielectric material. At least two of the first, second, and third passivation sublayers each includes a nitride.

Abstract: An isolation structure can be formed between adjacent and/or non-adjacent pixel regions (e.g., between diagonal or cross-road pixel regions), of an image sensor, to reduce and/or prevent optical crosstalk. The isolation structure may include a deep trench isolation (DTI) structure or another type of trench that is partially filled with a material such that an air gap is formed therein. The DTI structure having the air gap formed therein may reduce optical crosstalk between pixel regions. The reduced optical crosstalk may increase spatial resolution of the image sensor, may increase overall sensitivity of the image sensor, may decrease color mixing between pixel regions of the image sensor, and/or may decrease image noise after color correction of images captured using the image sensor.

Abstract: A charger circuit includes a power stage circuit operating at least one power switch according to an operating signal to convert an input power into an output power to charge a battery and/or to provide the output power to a load, wherein the output power includes a charging power and/or a load power; a control generating the operating signal according to a voltage amplifying signal; and a voltage error amplifier circuit comparing a voltage sensing signal relevant to a charging voltage of the charging power or a load voltage of the load power with a voltage reference level in a voltage hysteresis mode of a discontinuous conduction mode, so as to generate the voltage amplifying signal; wherein the control circuit adjusts the charging voltage or the load voltage according to the voltage amplifying signal, so as to maintain the charging voltage or the load voltage within a predetermined range.

Abstract: A switching capacitor power conversion circuit includes: a conversion capacitor, plural conversion transistors and an output capacitor connected to an output node. In a switching conversion mode, the switching capacitor power conversion circuit switches connections of the capacitor to convert the input power into an output power on an output node. During a first pre-charging period, a first conversion transistor is controlled to provide a first pre-charging current to pre-charge the conversion capacitor to a predetermined voltage level, and the output capacitor is prevented from being charged. During a second pre-charging period, a second conversion transistor is controlled to provide a second pre-charging current to pre-charge the output capacitor to the predetermined voltage level, and the second pre-charging current supplies a load current to a load circuit.

Abstract: In an encoder, a high-dynamic range (HDR) image is encoded using a family of local forward reshaping functions selected according to an array of forward mapping indices (FMI) indicating which local forward reshaping function needs to be used for each pixel in the HDR image to generate a reshaped standard dynamic range (SDR) image. A decoder, given the reshaped SDR image, iteratively generates a reconstructed HDR image and estimated reshaped SDR images by adjusting a local FMI array and a local array of backward mapping indices (BMI) until an error metric related to the difference between the local BMI and FMI arrays and the difference between the estimate SDR images and the reshaped SDR image satisfy a convergence criterion. Techniques for generating families of local forward reshaping functions and local backward reshaping functions based on a global forward reshaping function are also presented.

Abstract: An isolation structure can be formed between adjacent and/or non-adjacent pixel regions (e.g., between diagonal or cross-road pixel regions), of an image sensor, to reduce and/or prevent optical crosstalk. The isolation structure may include a deep trench isolation (DTI) structure or another type of trench that is partially filled with a material such that an air gap is formed therein. The DTI structure having the air gap formed therein may reduce optical crosstalk between pixel regions. The reduced optical crosstalk may increase spatial resolution of the image sensor, may increase overall sensitivity of the image sensor, may decrease color mixing between pixel regions of the image sensor, and/or may decrease image noise after color correction of images captured using the image sensor.

Abstract: A multi-mode power system includes a battery module, a first conversion circuit, and a second conversion circuit. The battery module includes a battery path switch and a battery group. The first conversion circuit includes switches and a first capacitor, wherein the switches include the battery path switch. The multi-mode power system operates in one of plural operation mode combinations, wherein when the first conversion circuit operates in a first outgoing mode or a first bypass mode, the second conversion circuit operates in a second incoming mode, a second outgoing mode, or a second bypass mode; when the first conversion circuit operates in a first incoming mode, the second conversion circuit operates in the second incoming mode or the second bypass mode.

Abstract: A switched capacitor converter includes plural switch units. The switch units are configured to switch a coupling relationship of a capacitor between a first power and a second power, wherein at least one of the switch units includes a switch circuit. The switch circuit includes a first switch, a second switch, and a switch driving circuit, wherein the conduction resistance of the first switch is greater than the conduction resistance of the second switch, and the parasitic capacitance of the first switch is less than the parasitic capacitance of the second switch. The switch driving circuit turns on the first switch before the second switch is turned on and/or turns off the first switch after the second switch is turned off, such that the switching loss of the switch circuit is less than a predetermined target value.

Abstract: A method for predicting sleep apnea from neural networks that mainly includes the following steps: a) retrieving an original signal; b) retrieving at least one snoring signal from the original signal by a snoring signal segmentation algorithm and converting the snoring signal into one with one-dimensional vector; c) applying a feature extraction algorithm to process the snoring signal with one-dimensional vector and transform the snoring signal into a feature matrix of two-dimensional vectors; and d) classifying the feature matrix by a neural network algorithm to obtain the number of times of sleep apnea and sleep hypopnea from the snoring signal. The method thereby is able to decide whether the snoring signal has revealed indications of sleep apnea or sleep hypopnea or not.