fraunhofer microelectronics news 42 march 2011
TRANSCRIPT
From the institutes
LEDs that keep their cool
Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are considered the light source of the future. However, the high temperatures involved do present a challenge. One day soon, microsystem tech-nology from Fraunhofer IZM could make optimum cooling possible.
»»page 9
Short news
Hockey live in 3D
»» page 13
The last word…
…comes from Kristin Albert from Fraunhofer ESK
»» page 16
März
From the institutes
A UV-permeable layer for image sensors
CMOS image sensors are making inroads: In addition to consumer electronics such as digi tal cameras, driver assistance systems are another promising field of application for optical semiconductor chips. In some areas, however, they are color-blind. Fraunhofer IMS can offer a solution.
»» page 8
From the institutes
Interactive window shopping
A new type of touch-free control system from Fraunhofer HHI in Berlin makes for quite a special shopping experience. Luxu-ry goods appear as if by magic on the dis-play, where they can be rotated and viewed from various angles.
»»page 11
Title
15 years of Fraunhofer VμE – off to Europe
Founded in 1996, the Fraunhofer Group for Microelectronics has since coordinated the activities of its member institutes. As director of the business office, Dr. Joachim Pelka reports on the Group’s suc-cesses and looks at what the fu-ture may hold for the Group under the leadership of its new chairman, Prof. Hubert Lakner. »» page 3Safety
and Security
Entertainment
Energy Ef cient Systems and eMobility
Communication Technologies
Ambient Assisted Living
Technology – from CMOS to Smart System Integration
Light
Content:
Events page 2Title page 3Interview page 4From the Institutes page 7Short news page 12Editorial notes page 15
Interview with Prof. Hubert Lakner.Photo: Fraunhofer IPMS » page 4
A new radiometer can detect the sources of fire even in low visibility. Photo: Wolfgang Krüll » page 7
Fig.: Fraunhofer VμE
April 2011 42
Fraunhofer VμE Microelectronics News
Events
Date Event / WWW Location Group institutesinvolved
03/21-03/22ECPE Workshop “Power Electronics for Charging Electric Vehicles”www.ecpe.org
Valencia, Spain
03/21-03/25 ICST 2011 www.sites.google.com/site/icst2011/
Berlin, Germany FOKUS
03/22-03/23 Smart Systems Integration www.smart-systems-integration.org
Dresden, Germany ENAS, IPMS
03/30-03/31 World Materials Perspectives 2011 www.wmp-roadmaps.org
Nancy, France ENAS
04/04-04/08 Hannover Messe www.hannovermesse.de
Hannover, Germany ENAS, IIS, IISB, IPMS, ISIT
04/07 10 years Fraunhofer inHaus Center www.inhaus.fraunhofer.de
Duisburg, Germany IMS
04/11-04/14 ImagineNano www.imaginenano.com
Bilbao, Spain FOKUS, HHI, IIS, IDMT
04/12-04/17 Euroluce www.nmessen.com
Milan, Italy IPMS
05/03-05/05 SMT/HYBRID/PACKAGING 2011 www.mesago.de
Nuremberg, Germany
IZM
05/03-05/06 Control 2010 www.control-messe.de
Stuttgart, Germany FHR, IIS, ISIT, IZFP
05/04-05/05 DASS 2011 www.eas.iis.fraunhofer.de
EAS IIS, Dresden, Germany
EAS IIS
05/08-05/15 MAM / IITC 2011 www.mam-conference.org
Dresden, Germany ENAS
05/15-05/20 SID-Display Week 2011 www.sid.org/conf/sid2011/sid2011.html
Los Angeles, USA IPMS
05/17-05/19 PCIM Europe www.mesago.de
Nuremberg, Germany
IISB, IZM
05/22-05/26 Compound Semiconductor Week 2011 www.iaf.fraunhofer.de
Berlin, Germany IAF, HHI
05/25-05/26 Laser World of Photonics www.world-of-photonics.net
Munich, Germany IPMS
05/31-06/03 ECTC 2011 www.ectc.net
Lake Buena Vista, USA
IZM
While every care is taken to ensure that this information is correct, no liability can be accepted for omissions or inaccuracies.
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It is now 15 years since the Fraunhofer Group for Microelectronics VμE was found-ed in its current form under the chairman-ship of Professor Herbert Reichl. What start-ed out as seven member institutes have now become thirteen full and three guest members. They cover almost the whole range of microelectronics and microsystem technologies, from nanoelectronics to ICT-related aspects and their applications under the banner of “More than Moore.”
The coordination work done within Fraunhofer VμE over the last few years has resulted in a number of seminal projects and has done a lot to promote the relation-ship between the 16 microelectronics insti-tutes. Issues such as the continuing inter-nal strategy process, work at the European level, and expert collaboration are the focus of the institutes’ cooperation with one an-other.
After Professor Reichl put in so much work setting up the Group, the institutes involved were successfully forged into a powerful single unit over the past six years under Professor Heinz Gerhäuser. At the beginning of 2011, Professor Gerhäuser passed the chairmanship on to the next generation.
Since January 1st, the Group’s fortunes have been steered by Professor Hubert Lakner, the director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMS in Dresden. Within the context of increasing European integration, Professor Lakner will face new challenges together with his colleagues on the board of directors. One of these challenges will be to work with partners in other EU countries to reshape micro-electronics research in Europe.
Contact: Dr. Joachim PelkaPhone +49 30 688 [email protected] Group for Microelectronics VµEAnna-Louisa-Karsch-Strasse 210178 BerlinGermanywww.mikroelektronik.fraunhofer.de
Dear Reader
Photo: aboutpixel.de / hawkeye
Photo: Fraunhofer IZM
Dr. Joachim Pelka. Photo: Fraunhofer VμE
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Aus den Instituten
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Interview
Mr. Lakner, as the new chairman of the Group for Microelectronics, you are stepping into some large shoes. You have taken over the office from Pro-fessor Heinz Gerhäuser, who in turn succeeded the founder of the first Fraunhofer Group, Professor Herbert Reichl. What qualities are you bringing with you into the office?
Lakner: I realize that a high standard has been set. I enter office confident that I have learned from watching my predecessors. I did, of course, witness both of them in of-fice. As deputy chairman, I also served on the steering committee. We managed the transition from Mr. Reichl to Mr. Gerhäuser very well, and I hope that we will do so again this time.
It is my responsibility to ensure that the expanding Microelectronics Group con-tinues to fly the flag for Fraunhofer’s aims and to make a strong contribution to the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft.
As deputy chairman, you were heavily involved in cultivating the Group’s international contacts. What were the results?
Lakner: Our global competitors in micro-electronics are in the USA, the Far East, and Europe. In the field of microelectronics, it’s no longer possible for one country to be able to cover all technologies – no country alone can keep all the necessary equipment in stock. That is why the Fraunhofer Group for Microelectronics would like to strengthen its position in Europe. To this end, we founded the “Heterogeneous Technology Alliance HTA” together with LETI in France, CSEM in Switzerland, and VTT in Finland. After a few years of working together, we can attest to the value of being able to ex-change strategies with one another. That builds trust and leads to new cooperation,
including EU projects. We can speak to Brussels in one voice, and in 4-Labs we have even founded a joint company that has just won its first industrial contracts. It is our aim to win clients that are not based in one of our four home countries.
The European Commission has now recognized microelectronics as a “key enabling technology.” What is the background?
Lakner: The importance of microelectronics is often underestimated because we can no longer see it at work. Let us take an exam-ple. Today, a car is really a set of chips on wheels. If you take out the electronics, the car doesn’t start, or at least no longer pro-vides you with any safety features. This hid-den presence of microelectronics throws up a question. Do we have to manufacture all of it ourselves, or can we simply buy it on the world market? By doing the latter how-ever, we run the risk of becoming strategi-cally dependent, as this kind of outsourc-ing affects our key industries. We cannot sell high-quality cars, precision machinery, or medical technology without microelec-tronics – highly complex micro- and nano-electronics are to be found in all of them. If, then, we miss the boat on manufactur-ing our own micro- and nanotechnologies, we have not only lost these technologies; we are also putting our traditional indus-tries at risk.
Once production has been lost, there is a great danger that – sooner or later – pro-duction research will follow. In order to make our case clear, we have expended considerable effort into convincing Brussels of this fact.
Professor Lakner. Photo: Fraunhofer IPMS
“Without microtechnology, we would be putting Europe’s traditional industries at risk”
The new chairman of the Group for Microelectronics is Professor Hubert Lakner, director of Fraunhofer IPMS. On January 1st, 2011, he succeeded Professor Heinz Gerhäuser, who had chaired the Group for six years. He spoke to Tanja Schmutzer from Fraunhofer headquarters about issues in-cluding his aims as the Group’s new chairman, the importance of microelec-tronics to Europe, and how to encourage up-and-coming young scientists.
About Hubert Lakner:Hubert Lakner received his diplo-ma-degree in physics at the Eber-hard-Karls-Universität in Tübingen in 1986. After one year in the industry he joined the Gerhard-Mercator-Uni-versity in Duisburg where he worked in the field of nanocharacterization of mesoscopic semiconductor struc-tures. He received his PhD (Dr.-Ing.) in Electrical Engineering in 1993. His work was focussed on high frequen-cy and high speed circuits based on compound semiconductor hetero-structures. Since January 2003 he has been the director of the new Fraunhofer Institute of Photonic Mi-crosystems (IPMS) which emerged from the former IMS Dresden. At the same time, Dr. Lakner was appoint-ed Professor for "Optoelectronic De-vices and Systems" in the Depart-ment of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology at the Tech-nical University Dresden. Since Jan-uary 1st 2011 he has been Chair of the Fraunhofer Group for Microelec-tronics. Prof. Dr. Lakner is married and has three children.
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Aus den Instituten
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You introduced a strategic process with a balanced scorecard model to Fraunhofer IPMS. How does this process work and how much of it could be transferred to the Group?
Lakner: We introduced the balanced score-card five years ago because we realized that looking at an institute from a purely fi-nancial point of view wasn’t enough. The scorecard also takes into consideration fac-tors such as innovation, employees and processes, and customer loyalty, including the aspects of quality and punctuality. This process proved itself at Fraunhofer IPMS. As for the Group itself, it too must be mea-sured by whether it’s going in the right di-rection and if it has the right industrial part-ners in Germany and Europe. To do so, we combine bottom-up and top-down ap-proaches. We look both at what the insti-tutes are offering as well as at social chal-lenges. We have to compare these two viewpoints in order to position the Group and its institutes optimally for the future. Some concrete examples are demograph-ic change, to which we are responding with Ambient Assisted Living products, a switch to green products, and urbanization. Since last year, the number of people living in cit-ies has exceeded those living outside. Microelectronics can contribute location, positioning, and navigational technology to keep traffic flowing. All of this is part of e-mobility, which is not concerned just with drive systems, but also with traffic flow and with general concepts that take a future switch from private vehicles to public trans-port into account. We have to see our task as one of solving social problems. Technology must not be an end in itself, but must instead always serve humanity.
Fraunhofer IPMS is working with Fraunhofer IAF to develop the lighting systems of the future, and its employees go to Fraunhofer IWS to use electron microscopes. Where do you, as Group chairman, envision further potential for fruitful cooperation within Fraunhofer?
Lakner: The great thing about Fraunhofer is, of course, the amazing diversity of insti-tutes. At Fraunhofer IPMS, we realized that we can sometimes tackle bigger projects more easily by including other institutes. At the same time, we don’t want to leave it up to our customers to find further part-ners in order to get a complete solution. In such cases, we offer ourselves as a sort of portal for customers, giving them access to other institutes.
Module with transparent solar cells. Photo: Fraunhofer IPMS
OLED-on-CMOS microdisplay. Photo: Fraunhofer IPMS
As well as the Fraunhofer Group for Production, microelectronics was one of the Fraunhofer disciplines that ex-perienced the highest drop in industri-al earnings in 2009. What were the rea-sons for this, and what are the current developments?
Lakner: It’s true that some institutes with-in the Group experienced a drop in industri-al earnings in 2009, particularly those that carry out application-oriented work in tan-dem with the automobile and microelec-tronics sectors. My own institute was af-fected as well. The good news, however, is that we didn’t lose any customers. I think I can speak for the whole Group in saying that. Many of our customers were unable to place orders in 2009 because of budget-ary constraints. But our customers are back and they are placing R&D orders with us, some of which are worth more than orders we received before the crisis.
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ECG shirt. Photo: Fraunhofer IPMS
For example, when we cooperate with Dresden-based institutes, our staff can even drive over to them, bringing a sample if needed. That is an invaluable boon. Fraunhofer IPMS is very well connected within the entire Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, including via internal programs. I could imagine the Group having the same sort of connections. There isn’t a single combi-nation of Groups that I would like to rule out. The closer the connections we devel-op internally, the more effective the servic-es we can offer customers. The fact that Fraunhofer can operate such networks is an important, unique selling point.
Where will the experts in micro- and nanoelectronics come from in the future?
Lakner: There is no single solution. We must make a greater effort to tap the po-tential of foreigners living in Germany, but we will not be able to make up the lack of talent through immigration alone. It is im-portant to encourage more young people to study mathematics, computers, science, and technology. The Fraunhofer Talent School is an important instrument for giving secondary school students an impression of various professions within the natural sci-
ences. Most students can imagine what a physician’s work entails, but few can imag-ine what working life is like after studying for a scientific degree. Once you’ve experi-enced the excitement of the young people who attend our Talent Schools, you can’t help but lose the pessimism that sometimes develops. For years, Fraunhofer IPMS has offered secondary school students the op-tion of doing the two-week internship re-quired by Saxony’s schools at the institute. Of course it requires tenacity, but it is the right approach.
Some microelectronics institutes are members of Fraunhofer’s alliance on Ambient Assisted Living, an issue that will come to the forefront during 2011, as it is the Year of Health. What’s hap-pening?
Lakner: We have a great number of health-related projects throughout the en-tire Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft. We saw this during the “Markets of the Day After To-morrow” competition – health was the field with the most institutes. Within the Group for Microelectronics, certain institutes such as Fraunhofer IIS and Fraunhofer IMS are strongly oriented towards medical technol-ogy. My institute, too, has a business unit in which implantable sensors whose read-ings can be sent from the body to the phy-sician’s computer are being developed. Particularly in sparsely populated areas, medical care will have to change. There will be fewer visits in person to a doctor or hos-pital, and medically relevant data will have to be transmitted to experts. That could save a lot of money. Last, but not least, we have to convince health insurance companies – and users – of the benefits of our ideas. It’s true that the generation currently growing up is very comfortable using computers and electronic devices, but our developments will have to be accompanied by acceptance studies.
Professor Lakner, thank you very much for talking to us.
Hubert Lakner was talking to Tanja Schmutzer. The interview first appeared in Fraunhofer’s employee magazine Quersumme, edition 5/2010.
Contact: Prof. Hubert LaknerPhone +49 351 [email protected] Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMSMaria-Reiche-Strasse 201109 DresdenGermanywww.ipms.fraunhofer.de
OLED light panel. Photo: Fraunhofer IPMS
Organic solar cell module. Photo: Fraunhofer IPMS
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The number and scale of forest fires has increased dramatically in recent decades. Who can forget last summer’s television im-ages of blazing infernos devouring miles and miles of forest in Russia, Australia and California? In Germany, too, several regions are under threat precipitated by climate change – Brandenburg, for example, is one of the areas of Europe that are most at risk.
Often, fires can only be contained from the air. In order to fight them in a targeted way, firefighting planes need to be given precise information on where the flames are at their worst. Infrared (IR) cameras have long been a trusted aid, since fire glows most intensely in the infrared range. IR cameras measure the intensity of the heat radiation emanating from a forest fire, and this leads them to its source. But de-spite the high-resolution images such cam-eras produce, they cannot be used to find the source of a fire in very smoky condi-tions because the dust and smoke severely dim the infrared rays.
Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Tech-niques FHR in Wachtberg have found a way around this problem by developing a radio-meter that can scan fires even when visibili-ty is limited. The radiometric sensor works in the microwave range between 8 and 40 GHz. At these low frequencies, radiation is scattered far less by dust particles than at the high IR frequencies. “Measurements
From the institutes
Contact: Denis NötelPhone +49 228 [email protected]
Jens FiegePhone +49 228 [email protected]
Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques FHRNeuenahrer Strasse 2053343 WachtbergGermanywww.fhr.fraunhofer.de
The radiometer can scan fires even when visibility is limited. Photo: wikipedia.de / John McColgan
Radiometer finds sources of fire
Forest fires usually spread out of control very quickly. Fires that produce a lot of smoke are particularly challenging for the emergency services, be-cause the source of the fire is then especially hard to find. A new radio-metric sensor can pinpoint the heart of the flames, even when visibility is limited.
we took during testing showed that the dimming effect was negligible at 22 GHz. Particles of dust and smoke are practically transparent in the microwave range, but the radiation is still strong enough for the source of a fire to be detected. From a height of 100 m, we were able to locate fires measuring 5 x 5 m² in low visibility conditions,” says Nora von Wahl of Fraunhofer FHR. For the test flights, the scientist and her team mounted the micro-wave sensors on the underside of an un-manned airship belonging to the FernUni-versität Hagen. “Along with the sensors themselves, the radiometer comprises a cal-ibrating unit, a planar antenna array, and software for recording and visualizing the data,” says von Wahl. The system’s resolu-tion is determined by the antenna’s angular aperture, so it depends on the size of the antenna, the frequency and the distance from the ground. Using an antenna mea-suring 20 cm at its outer rim, operated at a frequency of 22 GHz and from a height of 30 m, the radiometer can resolve details on the ground to a grid accuracy of 2.6 m. “The radio meter doesn’t give us as much detail as an infrared camera,” says the sci-entist, “but if we increase the size of the antenna we can achieve higher resolution.”
The radiometric sensor allows the research-ers to locate pockets of fire even behind a curtain of foliage. “After a forest fire, it is often the case that new fires start under-ground. To find them, firefighters have to go in and dig around by hand. Our radio-meter can detect fires below the top layer of earth,” says von Wahl. She goes on to explain that the system is principally suited to fire protection with firefighting planes, but could also be used to monitor industrial sites. This would, for instance, enable early detection of smoldering fires at waste incin-eration plants.
The radiometer, which measures 105 x 150 x 73 m³, is currently a prototype. The scien-tists’ aim is to make the device even small-er, and they also want to optimize the an-tenna. Future designs will be based on microchips.
Test flight: Mounted on an airship belonging to the FernUniversität Hagen, the radiometer can detect the sources of fire even in low visi-bility. Photo: Wolfgang Krüll
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A UV-permeable layer for image sensors
They have long been standard in consumer electronics, and their entry into other areas of application cannot be stopped. CMOS image sensors are no longer just to be found in cell phones and digital cameras. The automobile industry, for example, has discovered the potential of optical semiconductor chips and is using them more and more in driver assistance systems such as parking aids, lane marking detectors, and blind-spot warning devices.
From the institutes
Partially color-blind CMOS image sensors are now a thing of the past. Photo: wikipedia / MichaelMaggs
But these sensors, which convert light sig-nals into electric pulses, must be able to withstand high temperatures, high humidi-ty, and more, if they are used in special ap-plications. That is why CMOS devices are covered with a layer of silicon nitride. This chemical compound forms hard layers that protect the sensor from mechanical interfer-ence and from penetration by moisture and ions. The sensor receives its protective layer during the last stage of the CMOS semi-conductor process. Experts call this tech-nique ‘passivation,’ and industry requires it. But passivation has, until now, always pre-sented a problem: The silicon nitride layer has limited applicability in optics, as it can-not be permeated by light in the UV and blue spectral ranges. This makes CMOS sensor for industrial and special cameras somewhat color-blind.
Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Microelectronic Circuits and Systems IMS in Duisburg have now found a solution to this problem. “We developed a new stage in the process,” explains Werner Brock-herde, head of department at Fraunhofer IMS. “This stage allows us to manufacture a protective layer that can be permeated by blue and UV light, but still has the same
properties.” The crux of the trick was to in-crease the nitrogen content in the layer. “That is how we increased the band gap, as it is known,” explains Brockherde. Put simply, that means that light needs to have more energy than UV light does in order to be absorbed by the material, making the sensor permeable to light in the blue and UV range. “This means that CMOS image sensors can be used in wavelength ranges down to 200 nm,” says Brockherde. “With standard passivation, the limit was about 450 nm.” To change the structure of the silicon nitride, the Fraunhofer researchers had to make optimum adjustments to the deposit parameters, such as pressure and temperature, during the production of the layer.
Thanks to this development of the process, the experts have expanded the application spectrum of the CMOS image technology. In particular, the technology could revolu-tionize the UV spectroscopic methods used in laboratories all over the world, consider-ably improving their precision. CMOS image sensors could also be used in professional microscopy, such as with fluorescence mi-croscopes, to give scientists even more de-tailed images.
Contact: Werner Brockherde Phone +49 203 [email protected]
Martin van AckerenPhone +49 203 [email protected]
Fraunhofer Institute for Microelectronic Circuits and Systems IMS Finkenstrasse 6147057 DuisburgGermanywww.ims.fraunhofer.de
Future CMOS image sensors will have a transparent layer that can be permeated by light in the UV and blue spectral ranges. Photo: Fraunhofer IMS
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Light-emitting diodes are making an en-trance into more and more new areas, in-cluding the optics sector, mechanical en-gineering, and materials processing. To produce the luminosity required for appli-cations such as these, hundreds of LEDs have to be positioned together in as small a space as possible.
The problem, however, is that the power density of these high-output modules pro-duces a lot of heat, and if cooling is inade-quate, high temperatures develop. Unfortu-nately, light-emitting diodes react sensitively to the ambient temperature. At tempera-tures over 100 °C, the luminosity of most LEDs drops significantly. In order to be re-ally able to use the potential of high-pow-er LEDs, an optimum cooling arrangement is required. The higher the packing densi-ty, the greater the challenges faced by the heat management system.
Effective cooling structures
Scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZM have now – together with two industrial partners (Excelitas Technologies Corp. and Ceram Tec GmbH) and as part of the CooLED proj-ect sponsored by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research – developed a new type of high-power LED module with inte-grated water cooling. These modules have an output of up to 600 W. By comparison, the high-power LEDs with four chips on the market today have an output of around 6 W. The LEDs are packed into the smallest possible space: A luminous area of only 250 x 1 mm² contains up to 160 LEDs. They are mounted on a new type of water coolant device – manufactured by Ceram Tec GmbH – which is made of aluminum nitride. The experts at Fraunhofer IZM in Oberpfaffenhofen have designed the micro-fluidic current in the coolant device with great precision, thus ensuring that the cool-ant structures conduct heat away as effec-tively as possible, keeping the temperature inside the module homogeneous. This is
From the institutes
Contact: Dr. Rafael JordanPhone +49 30 [email protected] Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZM Gustav-Meyer-Allee 2513355 BerlinGermanywww.izm.fraunhofer.de
Temperature Distribution of AlN-Ceramic and cooling solution. Photo: Fraunhofer IZM
LEDs that keep their cool
They are robust, energy-efficient, and provide up to 50,000 hours of light: light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are considered the light source of the future. High-performance LEDs, in particular, are opening up to new industrial applications that were long unimaginable. However, the high temperatures involved do present a challenge, as LEDs prefer it to be cool. One day soon, microsystem technology from Fraunhofer IZM could make optimum cool-ing possible.
important to prevent deviations in output between individual LEDs, as this would shift the peak wavelength – an essential process parameter.
Measuring the temperature inside the chip
A team working at the Berlin division of the institute is responsible for thermal charac-terization. Up to now, it has only been pos-sible to measure the temperature outside the chip, but even the transition to neigh-boring material results in incorrect readings. “Now, for the first time, we have been able to measure the temperature electrical-ly at the p-n junction directly. This is where the highest temperatures are usually to be found,” explains Dr. Rafael Jordan, division manager of Photonics. This new method, which is known as junction temperature measurement and which is based on the forward voltage, enables temperatures to be determined to within half a degree. The project partners are also going down a new road regarding the die mount technologies: Alternative LED strips are sintered directly to the aluminum nitride piece without liquid solder. This prevents slippage during assem-bly, which is very important due to the re-quirements for accurate positioning on the tiny devices involved. Furthermore, the met-alized layers of the coolant device, which can only tolerate so much soldering, are not placed under unnecessary strain.
The project partners will present a prototype of the new module at this year’s SMT trade fair in Nuremberg. By about the middle of 2011, they hope to have developed a square module (400 LEDs on 16 cm²) with an even higher power density of ~ 1200 W.
High-power LED module with water cooling. Photo: CeramTec AG
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Microscanners are micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS): special chips with a tiny tilting mirror on their surface. Electrical cur-rent makes this mirror vibrate. If light hits the mirror, it is deflected, allowing it to scan a surface. That places the tiny devices at the heart of hand-held scanners and high-precision mini-projectors. Manufactur-ing these micro-scanner chips is time-con-suming. In a process comprising more than 100 steps, layers are added to a silicon wafer, exposed to light, and structured to form fine conductor structures and the movable mirror surface.
Select and order online
In the future, manufacturers of hand-held scanners and other optical devices will no longer have to wait several months for their finished microscanner chip. Scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsys-tems IPMS have developed a system that keeps costs down and reduces the waiting period to a few weeks. The VarioS microscanner construction kit is a modular production system to which cus-tomers can submit queries via an Internet platform (www.micro-mirrors.com). Simi-larly to an online shop, customers can se-
lect a suitable microscanner or configure one according to the requirements within defined design limits. They can choose be-tween different mirror diameters or order models whose mirrors can be tilted in one or two dimensions. In response to custom-er requests, the delivery time for a new mi-croscanner has been reduced to between three and a maximum of nine weeks.
Fast and efficient manufacture
The reduction in delivery times is thanks to optimization of the production process. Pre-viously, various properties of a microscan-ner were determined at the beginning of the process. When a customer ordered a new mirror, the device had to be produced from scratch, starting with a silicon wafer. The IPMS specialists have now designed the structure of the chip surface to be flexi-ble enough to allow a customer’s special re-quests to be incorporated relatively late in the process. “Today, microscanners have passed through around two thirds of the manufacturing process before final production starts in ac-cordance with customer requests,” says Denis Jung, who is managing development of the VarioS construction kit. This means that the finished device can be dispatched all the faster. This is particularly important to small and medium-sized companies, who need to be able to recoup development costs for a new product quickly from sales.
Ready-made scanners are available even faster
In the future, customer-specific production will often no longer be required. The online configurer that customers can use to adapt a new microscanner to meet their require-ments also offers ready-made devices al-ready in stock. This means that customers can take their pick of scanners that have been manufactured in one of 150 designs and adapted for various special purposes.
From the institutes
Contact: Denis JungPhone +49 351 [email protected]
Ines SchedwillPhone +49 351 [email protected]
Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMSMaria-Reiche-Strasse 201109 DresdenGermanywww.ipms.fraunhofer.de
VarioS – a faster way of making microscanners
Microscanners are used in devices such as bar code scanners and modern head-up displays. To remain competitive, these scanning micro-mirrors must be constantly redeveloped to new standards. That, however, is cost-intensive. Now Fraunhofer IPMS can offer a cost-effective entry-level solu-tion. The VarioS microscanner construction kit is a fast and efficient evalu-ation system for industrial customers.
Wafers with various MEMS scan-ners. Photo: Fraunhofer IPMS
VarioS makes it deceptively simple to configure individualized microscanners online, and to order even small quantities, or a single item, at low prices. Photo: Fraunhofer IPMS
mation such as manufacturer details, color, material, price, and availability can be added, and individualized greetings can be used to further personalize the customer’s shopping experience.
The “Interactive Shop Window” is compat-ible with all displays, and adapts to their size. It can be used with plasma, LED, LCD, front-projection, or rear-projection screens. The shop window of the future can be linked with existing software such as con-tent management or an inventory con-trol system. This allows store owners to show their entire range of merchandise on the display. The interactive shop window also makes it possible to track which prod-ucts have been viewed how often, allowing forecasts about possible future sales.
The system could also be installed in muse-ums or at trade fairs. The 3D capture sys-tem currently exists as a prototype with the new shop window implementation. The re-searchers have shown it at the CeBit trade fair in Hanover.
Soon customers will be able to buy Italian designer shoes when the store is closed or on weekends, with just a few simple ges-tures. You will find more information at www.hand-interaktion.de.
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Interactive window shopping
A passerby gazes longingly at the Italian designer shoes in the shop win-dow. When she points to them, the luxury goods appear as if by magic on the display, where they can be rotated and viewed from various an-gles. It may sound like science fiction, but it isn’t. A new type of touch-free control system from Fraunhofer HHI in Berlin makes for quite a spe-cial shopping experience.
From the institutes
Contact: Paul ChojeckiPhone +49 30 [email protected]
Dr. Gudrun QuandelPhone +49 30 [email protected]
Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute HHIEinsteinufer 3710587 BerlinGermanywww.hhi.fraunhofer.de
The “Interactive Shop Window” makes use of contact-free control technology. Photo: pixelio.de / Uta Herbert
The shop’s owner has set up the “Interac-tive Shop Window.” This device, from the Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute HHI, can be fully installed behind the windowpane. Customers can select and view merchan-dise laid out in the shop window on a dis-play simply by using gestures. Merchandise such as a pair of shoes, for example. By pointing a finger to a button, the custom-er can make the designer item rotate on the screen. The customer can use another gesture to zoom in and view the shoes up close: now the shoes can be seen in detail. Internet users are already familiar with this type of view from interactive online shop-ping. The technology is now about to make its debut in pedestrian shopping areas and malls.
Contact-free control
Two of the four small stereo cameras con-tinuously capture the 3D position of cus-tomers’ faces and eyes, while the other two record hand movements. Image-processing software calculates the coordinates and converts them into digital commands. The software can detect both gestures such as turning a hand as well as a finger pointing to a button seen on the monitor. The coor-dinates of the customer’s body parts are forwarded to the visualization application. Personal data is not recorded, unless it is needed to complete the purchase. This means that merchandise can be selected, viewed in detail, and bought straightaway, even if the store is closed. Additional infor-
Potential customers can use the shop window display to find out about the products they are in-terested in and even buy them straightaway. Photo: Fraunhofer HHI
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New sensors for indoor navigation
Motion sensors can be used to measure where and how fast an object is being moved within a space, and where it is cur-rently located. They are an important part of modern automobile electronics, such as in driver assistance systems like ESP. But they are also used in the field of multime-dia for applications such as Smartphone po-sitioning.
As part of the EU’s MILEPOST project, the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicon Technology ISIT is now developing a new type of mo-tion sensor together with the Mems Found-ry Itzehoe, SensorDynamics, Xsens and Consorizio Pisa Ricerche. These inertial sen-sors are manufactured using processes from silicon microsystem technology, and are grouped with many other sensors to form inertial measurement units (IMUs). As these IMUs can work considerably more precisely than devices currently available, they open up a range of new potential applications. One example would be navigation systems that continue to work where there is no
Short news
Contact: Marc BrielePhone +49 9131 [email protected] Institute for Integrated Circuits IISAm Wolfsmantel 3391058 ErlangenGermanywww.iis.fraunhofer.de
At the core of the system is Si Nanopho-tonics, a technology developed by IMEC in partnership with their INTEC laboratory at the University of Ghent. A spectral analyz-er can be used as a photonic integrated cir-cuit (PIC) to create an evaluation system for fiber sensors. Circuits for wireless commu-nication and energy transmission are added to the PIC; it is then integrated into a hous-ing and then connected to an optical Bragg grating sensor fiber. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS are responsible for the wireless data and energy transmission part of development – this is an important prerequisite to ensuring that the SmartFiber system can be integrat-ed fully into the material.
The new system makes machinery not only safer, but more economical, too: a wind turbine, for example, could be operated at close to its load limit quite safely, increasing its yield of electrical energy. Another ben-efit is that continuously updated informa-tion about the condition of machinery al-lows for demand-led maintenance. If there is the risk of a malfunction due to mechan-ical failure the system raises the alarm. This prevents the machine from being damaged and also improves operational safety.
Contact: Claus Wacker Phone +49 4821 17-4214 [email protected] Institute for Silicon Technology ISITFraunhoferstrasse 1 25524 Itzehoe Germanywww.isit.fraunhofer.de
Demonstrator of an inertial mea-surement unit that can take mea-surements in all spatial axes. As part of the EU’s MILEPOST project, the partners are integrating the functions of this system into a single microchip. Photo: Fraunhofer ISIT
GPS signal, such as in narrow street can-yons, tunnels, or buildings.
There are, however, still a few challenges to be overcome: long-term signal drift, sig-nal noise, and temperature-dependence, for example. Data-capture precision also needs to be improved considerably. For this reason, the project partners are developing new sensor designs, optimizing the elec-trical circuits that control the sensors, and creating innovative algorithms to evaluate the data.
By the end of the project in June 2013, the researchers hope to have integrated an IMU that works in all spatial axes with long-term positional stability and high-precision rate detection onto a single silicon chip. It will be possible to control and read the chip with a single ASIC. The project is being fi-nanced as part of the EU’s seventh frame-work program, “Research for small and me-dium-sized enterprises.”
Structural monitoring from the inside
The parts contained in wind turbine rotary blades, aircraft, or the walls of ships must keep working reliably even when placed under great strain. Even small faults such as tiny cracks could have dangerous conse-quences. As part of the SmartFiber project, scientists from all over Europe are work-ing on a system that is completely integrat-ed into materials, permitting uninterrupted monitoring of the structure of fiber com-posite materials.
Photo: pixelio.de / A. Senftleben
Composing made easy
A young man has come up with quite a special idea for his girlfriend’s birthday this year. He’s going to surprise her with a piece of music that he has written for her. And what is even more surprising is that he doesn’t play any instrument and can’t read music.
How is that possible? It’s all thanks to a new app called SoundPrism, which turns an iPad or an iPhone into a musical instru-ment or, rather, a harmony instrument. The software has been developed by Audani-ka GmbH, which was founded as a spin-off company from the Fraunhofer Insti-tute for Digital Media Technology IDMT in June 2010. The idea sounds promising: in-tuitive access to music will make it possible for everyone to create their own melodies. To make this possible, the software “trans-
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Short news
Contact: Wolfgang ThiemePhone +49 9131 [email protected] Institute for Integrated Circuits IISAm Wolfsmantel 3391058 ErlangenGermanywww.iis.fraunhofer.de
The perception of nearness intensifies the 3D effect, making the images even more impressive. Thanks to high picture quality and mechanical precision, no post-process-ing is required – the images can be mixed in the transmission van and broadcast live. For this hockey game, the researchers from Erlangen supplied a synchronizable version of their small point-of-view cameras, includ-ing a specially designed 3D side-by-side rig. The cameras are to be tested in more live productions over the coming months.
Exciting perspectives. Photo: pixelio.de / O. Fischer
lates” complex musical theory into geomet-ric shapes and colors that the user can con-trol via the touchpad. The low notes are on the left, and the high notes on the right, for example. Bright colors represent major notes and a more cheerful sound, while dark colors represent minor notes. A rising curve shows how intensely the suspense builds within a piece.
Managing director Sebastian Dittmann would also like the development to give new impetus to the teaching of music: “Musical theory would be much easier and more fun to learn if we approached the topic playfully and placed a greater em-phasis on composing.” Dittmann, a musi-cian himself, is convinced of that. But even if using SoundPrism in music classes is still a long way off, it is certainly fun to express your emotions and thoughts in your own individual sounds.
Contact: Sebastian Dittmann Phone +49 361 [email protected] Audanika GmbHEhrenbergstrasse 1198693 IlmenauGermanywww.audanika.com
Hockey live in 3D
Pay TV provider Sky has, for the first time, broadcast a German Ice Hockey League (DEL) game live in 3D, in conjunction with the HDSigns production company and the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Cir-cuits IIS. New camera technology from the Erlangen-based institute allowed view-ers to feel that they were right there on the ice at Cologne’s Lanxess Arena for the game between the Kölner Haie and Adler Mannheim. The main advantage of these “point-of-view” cameras is their size: They are only 8.5 cm x 6 cm x 4 cm. That means that they can be placed very close to the action, directly behind the goals, for exam-ple. This allows for special camera angles that are not possible with conventional 3D cameras.
Photo: Edenspiekermann AG
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Research for an effi-cient electric future
Today, around 40 per cent of the energy consumed around the world is supplied in the form of electricity, and by 2040 this number is set to rise to about 60 per cent. In the future, these huge quantities of ener-gy will not only have to be generated in a way that protects resources and the climate; they will also have to be distributed and used efficiently. This means that a great many inverters will be needed to ensure the correct voltage and frequency profile for every application. Previously, inversion processes have resulted in significant losses of energy. For this reason, the efficiency of such key components must show consistent improvement. The German federal govern-ment estimates that the introduction of new power electronics could unlock savings of 20 to 30 per cent.
To achieve this, scientists from eight indus-trial firms and research facilities are work-ing under the leadership of the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics IAF
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boundaries in edge covering and homog-enizing layer thicknesses. This self-limiting deposition of atom-thin monolayers makes it possible to conform to standards in coat-ing hard-to-reach or heavily structured sur-faces, all while maintaining precise control of the layer thickness.
Contact: Dr. Harald D. Müller Phone +49 761 [email protected] Institute for Applied Solid State Physics IAFTullastrasse 7279108 FreiburgGermanywww.iaf.fraunhofer.de
Contact: Dr. Jonas SundqvistPhone +49 351 [email protected] Center Nanoelectronic Technology CNTKönigsbrücker Strasse 18001099 DresdenGermanywww.cnt.fraunhofer.de
Power transistors made of gallium nitride, for system tests. Photo: Fraunhofer IAF
on the new joint project “Power GaN Plus” The aim is to develop new energy-efficient solutions based on gallium nitride (GaN).
Transistors made of this relatively new semi-conductor material work much more ener-gy-efficiently at high voltages and currents than do conventional silicon parts. They can also be operated at significantly high-er temperatures, which in turn reduces the cooling requirements, weight, and size of the transformers. To demonstrate the mate-rial’s abilities under real conditions, the re-search consortium will set up two demon-strators: an inverter to feed energy from solar parks into the power grid and a trans-former to charge the battery of an electric car efficiently.
The research project is being financed by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) with a total contribu-tion of 2.8 million euros.
Fraunhofer CNT and TU Dresden found “ALD Lab Dresden”
After working together for five years, the ALD group at the Fraunhofer Center Na-noelectronic Technologies CNT and the In-stitute for Semiconductor and Microsystem Technology (IHM) at the Technical Univer-sity of Dresden have now received an offi-cial framework. The umbrella organization “ALD Lab Dresden” was founded at the end of last year. The lab combines experi-ences gathered in the area of atomic layer deposition (ALD) and develops new ALD precursors and processes for the semicon-ductor and photovoltaics industry.Joint projects with partners such as chemi-cals manufacturer Air Liquid or NaMLab – a partner institute and research facility at TU Dresden – are planned for the future.
Modern processes and the analytical ap-proach of the IHM offer the scientists from Fraunhofer the chance to gain in-depth knowledge about ALD processes. This knowledge is particularly beneficial when transferring research results to the process-ing of 300 mm silicon wafers.
ALD is required when conventional depo-sition processes reach their technological
The ALD process is an important component of the processing chain and will continue to drive the development of the next generation of technology forward. Photo: Fraunhofer CNT
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Microelectronics News
Editorial notes
Microelectronics News, Issue 42April 2011© Fraunhofer Group for Micro electronics VμE, Berlin 2011
Fraunhofer Group for Micro electronics VμESpreePalais am DomAnna-Louisa-Karsch-Strasse 210178 BerlinGermanywww.mikroelektronik.fraunhofer.de
The Fraunhofer Group for Microelectronics (German abbreviation: VμE), founded in 1996, combines the expertise of 16 Fraunhofer in-stitutes, with a total of more than 2.700 em-ployees. Its main focus is the preparation and coordination of interdisciplinary research pro-jects, conducting studies and to assist in the process of identifying strategies.
Editorial team: Christian Lüdemann Phone +49 30 [email protected]
Tina MöbiusPhone +49 89 [email protected]
Lisa SchwedePhone +49 30 [email protected]
Glen WerneckePhone +49 30 [email protected]
Akvile ZaludaitePhone +49 30 [email protected]
Jörg StephanPhone +49 30 [email protected]
Translation: Andrew [email protected]
Photo: pixelio.de / hldg
The business office of Fraunhofer VμE is located directly at the River Spree in the heart of Berlin. Photo: Fraunhofer VμE / Kracheel
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The last word…
…today goes to Kristin Albert.
Ms. Albert, what are you working on at the moment?
I’m interested in how we can put mobile applications together from existing compo-nents. That will enable us to develop apps quickly and make them compatible with all platforms. To achieve this, my colleagues and I developed a tool with a graphical user interface. The tool can be used to model the process and to determine the appear-ance of the application. A GUI like this will make it possible for all users to create their own mobile applications, even without any knowledge of programming.
Which of the projects being worked on by your colleagues in other Fraunhofer institutes interests you in particular?
I saw the work being done at the Fraunhofer Institute for Open Communication Systems FOKUS when I visited IFA, Berlin’s annual consumer electronics trade show. Our col-leagues there want to make it possible to develop applications independently of the end device, so that it wouldn’t matter whether the application was to be used in a television or a cell phone. Due to the various systems and differing characteristics of the displays involved, that’s quite a challenge.
Imagine that, during a project, you re-ceive a visit from some very nice col-leagues and you would like to show them something of the city in the eve-ning other than the usual tourist sights. Do you have an insider tip?
I would take them to dinner in my favorite restaurant, Cooperativa, near Fraunhofer-strasse. They have very delicious Mediter-ranean food at a good price. Then I would take them to play “foosball” in Südstadt, a quite unusual bar by Munich standards. The flair of the student crowd, the relaxed at-mosphere, and the good music make for a perfect evening.
What was your dream job when you were a child?
I wanted to work with animals. As a child, I used to play with every creature I found in the garden and it was my dream to work at the zoo. Today, I could see myself help-ing out in a home for orphaned monkeys in Africa or at an animal shelter here in Ger-many. That’s something that I’m sure I’ll be doing soon.
What do you wish you had more time for?
I would like to work on some of my own projects outside of Fraunhofer. I have a lot of ideas that are just waiting to be put into practice. I’m very interested in the world of Web 2.0, social media, and mobile end de-vices. For example, I’ve long wanted to de-velop an app that would help me and my boyfriend to organize shopping, appoint-ments, and housework jointly. It would be ideal if it also included a rewards system, to make sure the work is also fun.
What else would you like to achieve at work?
The first thing I can think of is going on a world tour with one of my favorite bands. It would be great fun to go on tour with Beatsteaks or Marilyn Manson.
What was the last YouTube video you watched?
The video to “Roll That Stone” by Phone-heads, because somebody posted it on Twitter. It’s really quite funny. There’s a man sitting at a kitchen table, while everything around him moves quite fast. The video is already quite a few years old, though.
Last, but not least: Can you tell us what motto you live by?
“We can only lead a fulfilled life by doing things we love.” I try, as far as I can, to lis-ten to my heart and, if I have to, am happy to do without money, power, and materi-al things.
About Kristin Albert:Kristin Albert was born in Hoyers-werda in Saxony on December 17th, 1983. She studied computer science for media at the Technical Universi-ty of Dresden. She wrote her degree dissertation on “Template Manager – a platform for the collaborative man-agement of self-explanatory modules in ELEPHANT” in conjunction with the Fraunhofer Institute for Commu-nication Systems ESK. Kristin Albert has worked as a research associate at Fraunhofer ESK since 2009. She works in the Industrial Communica-tions business unit. Her work focus-es on research in mobile and ubiqui-tous applications, intelligent user in-terfaces, and assistance systems. She is currently working on the industrial use of multi-touch gestures.
Contact: Kristin AlbertPhone +49 89 [email protected] Institute for Communication Systems ESKHansastrasse 3280686 MunichGermanywww.esk.fraunhofer.de
Fig.: pixelio.de / Gerd Altmann