Abstract: A method for preparing the memory are provided. The method includes forming a trench at a front side of a semiconductor substrate, wherein the trench defines laterally separate active areas formed of surface regions of the semiconductor substrate; filling an isolation structure in the trench, wherein the isolation structure is filled to a height lower than top surfaces of the active areas; recessing a first group of the active areas from top surfaces of the first group of the active areas, while having top surfaces of a second group of the active areas covered; and forming contact enhancement sidewall spacers to laterally surround top portions of the active areas, respectively.

Abstract: Systems and methods for evaluating and presenting robustness of a radiotherapy treatment plan for use in radiotherapy are discussed. An exemplary system includes a processor to generate, in a radiation simulation in accordance with the treatment plan under evaluation, dose distributions at an anatomical structure under a nominal condition and one or more artificially imposed uncertainty conditions, determine a dose distribution characteristic for the anatomical structure using the received dose distributions, and generate a robustness indicator of the treatment plan. The dose distributions may be determined at a target structure and one or more structures at risk, and presented graphically in a three-dimensional dose-volume-structure space. An output circuit can output the dose distribution characteristic or the robustness indicator to a user or a treatment planning system.

Abstract: The present disclosure provides a semiconductor device includes a semiconductor substrate, a first metal plug, a second metal plug, a third metal plug, a fourth metal plug, and a boron nitride layer. The first metal plug and the second metal plug are disposed over a pattern-dense region of the semiconductor substrate. The third metal plug and the fourth metal plug are disposed over a pattern-loose region of the semiconductor substrate. The boron nitride layer is disposed over the semiconductor substrate. Each of the first metal plug and the second metal plug includes a barrier layer and a conductive feature. The barrier layer is contact with the semiconductor substrate. The conductive feature is disposed over the barrier layer. The conductive feature is separated from the semiconductor substrate by the barrier layer.

Abstract: Examples described herein relate to an optical device that entails phase shifting an optical signal. The optical device includes an optical waveguide having a first semiconductor material region and a second semiconductor material region formed adjacent to each other and defining a junction therebetween. Further, the optical device includes an insulating layer formed on top of the optical waveguide. Moreover, the optical device includes a III-V semiconductor layer formed on top of the insulating layer causing an optical mode of an optical signal passing through the optical waveguide to overlap with the first semiconductor material region, the second semiconductor material region, the insulating layer, and the III-V semiconductor layer thereby resulting in a phase shift in the optical signal passing through the optical waveguide.

Abstract: The present disclosure provides a vertical memory structure including a semiconductor stack, a contact plug, gate electrodes and air gap structures. The semiconductor stack includes a lower semiconductor pattern structure filling a recess on a substrate and protruding from an upper surface of the substrate in a first direction substantially perpendicular to the upper surface of the substrate. The contact plug is disposed over the lower semiconductor pattern structure. The contact plug includes a lower portion and a middle portion over the lower portion. A width of the middle portion is less than a width of the lower portion. The gate electrodes are surrounding a sidewall of the semiconductor stack. The air gap structures are disposed at outer sides of the plurality of gate electrode respectively.

Abstract: This disclosure provides a multi-mode control method for an active clamp flyback converter. In the flyback converter, the controller realizes mode switching between a trailing edge non-complementary mode, a leading edge non-complementary mode, and a leading edge non-complementary Burst mode of two driving signals after comparing a detection feedback voltage with the set mode switching threshold voltages. The disclosure adopts the trailing edge non-complementary mode to reduce a circulating current of the converter, uses the leading edge non-complementary mode to replace the ordinary flyback mode to improve light load efficiency, and uses the leading-edge non-complementary Burst mode at no-load to limit a peak current of a primary side in leading-edge non-complementary Burst mode to avoid generation of audio noise, and allowing a low no-load power consumption.

Abstract: The various implementations described herein include methods, devices, and systems for attending to a presenting user. In one aspect, a method is performed at an electronic device that includes an image sensor, microphones, a display, processor(s), and memory. The device (1) obtains audio signals by concurrently receiving audio data at each microphone; (2) determines based on the obtained audio signals that a person is speaking in a vicinity of the device; (3) obtains video data from the image sensor; (4) determines via the video data that the person is not within a field of view of the image sensor; (5) reorients the electronic device based on differences in the received audio data; (6) after reorienting the electronic device, obtains second video data from the image sensor and determines that the person is within the field of view; and (7) attends to the person by directing the display toward the person.

Abstract: Methods, apparatus, systems, and computer-readable media are provided for generating and/or adapting automated assistant content according to a distance of a user relative to an automated assistant interface that renders the automated assistant content. For instance, the automated assistant can provide data for a client device to render. The client device can request additional data when the user relocates closer to, or further from, the client device. In some implementations, a request for additional data can identify a distance between the user and the client device. In this way, the additional data can be generated or selected according to the distance in the request. Other implementations can allow an automated assistant to determine an active user from a group of users in an environment, and determine a distance between the active user and the client device in order that any rendered content can be tailored for the active user.

Abstract: A method for preparing the memory are provided. The method includes forming a trench at a front side of a semiconductor substrate, wherein the trench defines laterally separate active areas formed of surface regions of the semiconductor substrate; filling an isolation structure in the trench, wherein the isolation structure is filled to a height lower than top surfaces of the active areas; recessing a first group of the active areas from top surfaces of the first group of the active areas, while having top surfaces of a second group of the active areas covered; and forming contact enhancement sidewall spacers to laterally surround top portions of the active areas, respectively.

Abstract: Implementations disclosed herein provide for improving phase tuning efficiency of optical devices, such as a hybrid metal-on-semiconductor capacitor (MOSCAP) III-V/Si micro-ring laser. The present disclosure integrates silicon devices into a waveguide structural of the optical devices disclosed herein, for example, a waveguide resistor heater, a waveguide PIN diode, and waveguide PN diode. In some examples, the optical devices is a MOSCAP formed by a dielectric layer between two semiconductor layers, which provides for small phase tuning via plasma dispersion and/or carrier dispersion effect will occur depending on bias polarity. The plasma dispersion and/or carrier dispersion effect is enhanced according to implementations disclosed herein by heat, carrier injection, and/or additional plasma dispersion based on the silicon devices disclosed integrated into the waveguide.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method to limit access to sensitive information by filtering log files. The method includes deploying a first pod on a node of a cloud computing system, where the first pod includes a first container configured to run an application. The method also includes generating a first log file for the first container, where the first log file includes a set of actions performed by the application for a period of time. The method further includes filtering, by a filter, the first log file wherein the filter is configured to remove a type of sensitive data from the first log file. The method includes exporting, in response to the filtering, the first log file to the node. Advantageously, this can prevent various parties from accessing sensitive data that is contained in log files.

Abstract: The present disclosure discloses a feeding apparatus, which includes a motor, a driving unit, and a noise reduction module. The noise reduction module includes an audio receiving unit and a control unit. The audio receiving unit receives the sound generated by the feeding apparatus when the motor is running. The control unit is electronically connected to the driving unit and the audio receiving unit. The control unit sequentially supplies a plurality of motor drive data to the driving unit to drive the motor to run. The control unit sequentially receives a plurality of sound signals corresponding to those motor drive data from the audio receiving unit. The control unit analyzes the sound signals and selects one of the sound signals as an optimized sound signal. The control unit stores the motor drive data corresponding to the optimized sound signal as a setting motor drive data.

Abstract: A sound receiving device and a control method of the sound receiving device are provided. The sound receiving device includes a microphone apparatus, an object detection apparatus, and a processor. The microphone apparatus provides an audio signal. The object detection apparatus detects position information of at least one object. The processor is coupled to the microphone apparatus and the object detection apparatus. The processor determines position information of a sound source according to the audio signal and the position information of the at least one object, and adjusts each microphone gain in the microphone apparatus to receive sound from the sound source.

Abstract: The present disclosure provides a method for preparing a semiconductor device. The method includes forming a first metal plug, a second metal plug, a third metal plug, and a fourth metal plug over a semiconductor substrate. The method also includes depositing a boron nitride layer over the first metal plug, the second metal plug, the third metal plug, and the fourth metal plug. A first portion of the boron nitride layer extends between the first metal plug and the second metal plug such that the first portion of the boron nitride layer and the semiconductor substrate are separated by an airgap while a second portion of the boron nitride layer extends between the third metal plug and the fourth metal plug such that the second portion of the boron nitride layer is in direct contact with the semiconductor substrate.

Abstract: A temperature measurement system and a temperature measurement method are provided. The system includes a temperature sensor, a distance sensor, an image sensor, and a processor. The image sensor is configured to obtain an environmental image of a measurement environment. The processor is configured to perform an object detection on the environmental image to obtain a calibration target. The distance sensor is configured to obtain a position information of the calibration target. The temperature sensor is configured to obtain a target temperature information of the calibration target and an environmental temperature of the measurement environment. The processor obtains a calibrated target temperature information of the calibration target according to the position information of the calibration target, the target temperature information of the calibration target, and the environmental temperature of the measurement environment.

Abstract: Examples described herein relate to an optical device, such as, a ring resonator, that includes a ring waveguide. The ring resonator includes a ring waveguide to allow passage of light therethrough. Further, the ring resonator includes a modulator formed along a first section of the circumference of the ring waveguide to modulate the light inside the ring waveguide based on an application of a first reverse bias voltage to the modulator. Moreover, the ring resonator includes an avalanche photodiode (APD) isolated from the modulator and formed along a second section of the circumference of the ring waveguide to detect the intensity of the light inside the ring waveguide based on an application of a second reverse bias voltage to the APD. The second section is shorter than the first section, and the second reverse bias voltage is higher than the first reverse bias voltage.

Abstract: An image capturing device includes an optical zoom lens module, a processing module, and a motion sensing module. The optical zoom lens module captures an image corresponding to a first field of view according to a preset parameter. An auto-framing unit of the processing module defines a second field of view according to the position of a main object in the image corresponding to the first field of view, and the second field of view is smaller than the first field of view. The processing module controls the optical zoom lens module to capture images corresponding to the second field of view. When the motion sensing module detects that a suspected object enters the first field of view, it transmits a switching signal to the processing module, which controls the optical zoom lens module to capture the image corresponding to the first field of view.

Abstract: Hot word free adaptation, of one or more function(s) of an automated assistant, responsive to determining, based on gaze measure(s) and/or active speech measure(s), that a user is engaging with the automated assistant. Implementations relate to various techniques for mitigating false positive occurrences of and/or false negative occurrences, of hot word free adaptation, through utilization of personalized parameter(s) for at least some user(s) of an assistant device. The personalized parameter(s) are utilized in determining whether condition(s) are satisfied, where those condition(s), if satisfied, indicate that the user is engaging in hot word free interaction with the automated assistant and result in adaptation of function(s) of the automated assistant.

Abstract: Adapting an automated assistant based on detecting: movement of a mouth of a user; and/or that a gaze of the user is directed at an assistant device that provides an automated assistant interface (graphical and/or audible) of the automated assistant. The detecting of the mouth movement and/or the directed gaze can be based on processing of vision data from one or more vision components associated with the assistant device, such as a camera incorporated in the assistant device. The mouth movement that is detected can be movement that is indicative of a user (to whom the mouth belongs) speaking.

Abstract: A. waking device is used for waking an electronic device. The waking device includes an infrared sensor and a radar sensor. The infrared sensor continuously measures an energy value in a detection area. When the infrared sensor detects an energy variation, the infrared sensor sends a trigger signal. The radar sensor is electrically connected to the infrared sensor and the electronic device. After the radar sensor receives the trigger signal, the radar sensor switches from a sleep mode to an operating mode. Furthermore, when the radar sensor determines that there is a moving object in the detection area, the radar sensor sends a wake-up signal to the electronic device.