Semiconductor Manufacturing International (Italy)

Background/Objectives: The use of vaginal mesh for pelvic organ prolapse (POP) repair remains controversial following global restrictions due to safety concerns. This study evaluated intra- and perioperative morbidity following a standardized single-incision, six-point fixation approach using an ultralight vaginal mesh in primary surgery for anterior/central POP. Methods: We conducted a retrospective multicenter study including 426 women who underwent primary POP repair with the InGYNious mesh system between May 2016 and February 2024. All surgeries followed a uniform technique across seven Italian centers. Data were collected on perioperative complications, urinary function, postoperative pain, and catheter duration. Results: The overall morbidity rate was 7.3% (31/426), primarily due to hematomas (4.5%), bladder injuries (1.4%), and ureteral injuries (0.7%). Median surgery duration was 40 min with minimal blood loss. Early postoperative pain was associated with higher POP-Q scores, longer surgical duration, and lower BMI. No cases of de novo urinary incontinence or urinary tract infection were reported in the perioperative period. Conclusions: This large multicenter case series suggests that, in experienced hands, this standardized vaginal mesh approach is associated with a low perioperative complication rate. However, the absence of a control group and the short follow-up are major limitations. Long-term outcome data, particularly regarding mesh-related complications, are essential before drawing firm conclusions on the broader safety or role of vaginal mesh in POP repair.

The study aims to conclude the benefits of virtual representation in helping students learn mathematics. To answer this goal, this research utilizes the meta-analysis method of two-group difference design. The data collection process used inclusion criteria. The data collection process was carried out with the PRISMA. The results of the effect analysis of the p-value < 5% (95% confidence interval) and the total effect of 1.1761 so that virtual representation has a significant influence. The analysis showed that i) implementation in each continent showed identical positive effects, ii) the number of students subjected to the treatment did not make a difference, iii) themes in mathematics were equally well affected with the help of virtual representation, iv) the effect of virtual representation in junior high school, high school, and university was identical, v) the development of competencies in attitude, knowledge, and skills was equally good, vi) among the many applications, GeoGebra was the application that had the greatest impact in helping students understand mathematics subject matter, and vii) the use of smartphones had a greater effect than other devices such as computers and calculators. To produce the maximum effect in understanding students, it is recommended to use mobile devices and GeoGebra software.

Silicene or the two-dimensional (2D) graphene-like silicon allotrope has recently emerged as a promising candidate for various applications in nanotechnology. However, concerns on the silicene stability still persist to date and need to be addressed aiming at the fabrication of competing and durable silicene-based devices. Here, we present an all-around encapsulation methodology beyond the current state-of-the-art silicene configuration, namely silicene sandwiched in between a capping layer (e.g., Al2O3) and the supporting substrate (e.g., Ag). In this framework, the insertion of one or two sacrificial 2D Sn layers enables the realization of different atomically thin encapsulation schemes, preserving the pristine properties of silicene while decoupling it from the growth template. On one hand, the epitaxy of a 2D Sn layer before silicene allows for the removal of the Ag substrate with no effect on silicene which in turn can be easily gated, for example, with an oxide layer on its top face. On the other hand, a full 2D encapsulation scheme, where top and bottom faces of silicene are protected by 2D Sn layers, gives rise to an atomically thin and cm2-scaled membrane preventing degradation of silicene for months. Both schemes thus constitute an advancement for the silicene stability and encapsulation in ambient conditions, paving the way to further exploitation in flexible electronics and photonics.

Abstract Large‐area antimony telluride (Sb2Te3) thin films are grown by a metal organic chemical vapor deposition technique on 4” Si(111) substrates, and their topological character probed by magnetoconductance measurements. When interfaced with Fe thin films, broadband ferromagnetic resonance spectroscopy (BFMR) shows a clear increase of the damping parameter in Fe/Sb2Te3 when compared to a reference Fe layer, which may suggest the occurrence of spin pumping (SP) into Sb2Te3. Simultaneously, X‐ray reflectivity and conversion electron Mossbauer spectroscopy evidence the development of a chemically and magnetically pure Fe/Sb2Te3 interface. However, by conducting SP‐FMR, it is shown that no spin‐to‐charge conversion (S2C) occurs in Fe/Sb2Te3, while a clear SP signal develops by introducing a 5 nm Au interlayer between Fe and Sb2Te3, with a measured inverse Edelstein effect conversion efficiency of λIEE = 0.27 nm. The results shed some light on the correlation among the chemical‐structural‐magnetic properties of the Fe/Sb2Te3 interface, the broadening of the magnetic damping parameter as detected by BFMR, and the occurrence of S2C, as probed by SP‐FMR.

In this work, we model 3D corner residues based on a process flow simulation using the Coventor SEMulator3D virtual platform. The role of clogging existing during plasma etch process in 3D corner formation has been studied based on the simulation results. In particular, the impacts of clogging and plasma aspect ratio distribution functions on corner size in typical etching steps are assessed. Furthermore, tunable model provides insights on the effect of fin height variation. Higher Fin structure could provide more shadowing effects which encourage the aggregation of 3D corner residue. In an advanced model containing multiple dry etch steps, the window of plasma divergence is also discussed, which is helpful to study and deal with the existing of 3D corner residue.

Abstract The synthesis of new Xenes and their potential applications prototypes have achieved significant milestones so far. However, to date the realization of Xene heterostructures in analogy with the well known van der Waals heterostructures remains an unresolved issue. Here, a Xene heterostructure concept based on the epitaxial combination of silicene and stanene on Ag(111) is introduced, and how one Xene layer enables another Xene layer of a different nature to grow on top is demonstrated. Single‐phase (4 × 4) silicene is synthesized using stanene as a template, and stanene is grown on top of silicene on the other way around. In both heterostructures, in situ and ex situ probes confirm layer‐by‐layer growth without intercalations and intermixing. Modeling via density functional theory shows that the atomic layers in the heterostructures are strongly interacting, and hexagonal symmetry conservation in each individual layer is sequence selective. The results provide a substantial step toward currently missing Xene heterostructures and may inspire new paths for atomic‐scale materials engineering.

<div> <p><em>We present the SESAR funded project ALARM. The overall objective of ALARM is to develop a prototype global multi-hazard monitoring and Early Warning System for different hazards affecting aviation. Continuous global Earth observations from satellite, ground-based systems, and atmospheric forecasts will be used to feed models capable of observing and predicting (nowcasting/forecasting) the displacement of particles in suspension and gas derived from natural hazards (volcanic ash and SO2, dust clouds from sandstorms, and smoke from a forest fire); severe weather situations such as deep convection and extreme weather; exposure to increased levels of solar radiation during flight; and environmental hotspots potentially contributing to global warming in a large extent. Specifically, the aim is to enhance situational awareness of all stakeholders in case of multiple hazard crisis by facilitating the transfer of required relevant information to end-users, presenting such information in a user-friendly manner to ATM stakeholders. In summary, anticipating severe hazards and fostering better decision-making.</em></p> <ul><li><em>ALARM will enhance an existing alert system –– with additional observations coming from geostationary satellites, improving the capabilities of observing natural hazards such as volcanic ash, SO2 plumes, sandstorms, and forest fire.</em></li> <li><em>ALARM will tailor alert products (based on observations from satellites) of volcanic ash, SO2 plumes, sandstorms, and forest fire to aviation stakeholders, including its severity, geographical location, and altitude.</em></li> <li><em>ALARM will develop nowcasting [up to 2 hours] and short-term forecasting [up to 6 hours] of SO2 plumes at a regional scale.</em></li> <li><em>ALARM will develop nowcasting [up to 2 hours] and short-term forecasting [up to 6 hours] of severe thunderstorms at a local scale (airport).</em></li> <li><em>ALARM will develop short-term forecasting [up to 6 hours] and medium-term forecasting [up to 48 hours] of climatic hotspots at a European scale.</em></li> <li><em>ALARM will draft the requirements of all these alert products to be included in the SWIM Yellow profile.</em></li> </ul><p> </p> </div>

The self-aligned contact (SAC) is a key process in developing the next generation ultra-large scale integrated (ULSI) devices because its advantage on providing an efficient reduction of active array areas, decreasing the transistor gate features, and alignment margin improvements in photolithography (1-2). With the transistor gate feature size continuously scaled down, pattern density and aspect ratios continuously increase, conversely. It requires a robust etch process to solve the multiple issues such as hard mask (HM) loss loading between different patterns (trench, hole, etc.), HM shoulder profile, sidewall profile control (3). In this work, we examined the impact of various technologies on the extremely high aspect ratio SAC etch process, including source pulsing, bias pulsing, synchronous pulsing and the atomic layer etch (ALE) methods. Results indicate the introduction of pulsing function could significantly reduce the nitride loss while avoid the contact open. The synchronous pulsing and ALE scheme shows its superior capability on improving the trade-off between HM loss and profile control. To further improve the process margin, we also introduced a novel HM shape engineering. Finally we achieved a manufacturable SAC process without any side effect. Acknowledgments The authors gratefully acknowledge support from Shanghai Sailing Program. References Kim, J. Vac. Sci. Technol. A 23(4), 7(2005).Kim, J. Vac. Scl. Technol. B 20(5), 9(2002)H. Zheng, A study of self-aligned contact etch of NOR flash , China Semiconductor Technology International Conference (2015).

The large foreseeable use two-dimensional materials in nanotechnology consequently demands precise methods for their thickness measurements. Usually, having a quick and easy methodology is a key requisite for the inspection of the large number of flakes produced by exfoliation methods. An effective option in this respect relies on the measurement of the intensity of Raman spectra, which can be used even when the flakes are encapsulated by a transparent protective layer. However, when using this methodology, special attention should be paid to the crystalline anisotropy of the examined material. Specifically, for the case of black phosphorus flakes, the absolute experimental determination of the thickness is rather difficult because the material is characterized by a low symmetry and also because the Raman tensors are complex quantities. In this work, we exploited Raman spectroscopy to measure the thickness of black phosphorous flakes using silicon as reference material for intensity calibrations. We found out that we can determine the thickness of a flake above 5 nm with an accuracy of about 20%. We tested the reproducibility of the method on two different setups, finding similar results. The method can be applied also to other van der Waals materials with a Raman band characterized by the same Raman tensor.

Isolation of graphene is today a milestone in condensed matter physics that paves the way to a new entire class of 2D synthetic materials referred to as Xenes with no analogous bulk layered allotropes. The booming rush to discover first novel and unprecedented materials flows into two generations of Xenes: the first one strictly relates to carbon being made of elements of the IV/14 column/group of the periodic table, and the second one includes elements of the adjacent columns. From borophene to tellurene, with rare exceptions, the physics and chemistry of the elements are rewritten and herein reviewed in terms of their fundamental and peculiar properties. Particular attention is paid to the epitaxial methodologies and configurational details, aiming at determining key points for nanotechnology applications of the Xenes afforded by scalability, quality, and stability aspects. Finally, the ongoing efforts to devise and realize applications based on the Xenes are summarized.