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VOLUME 4 NUMBER 6 JUNE 2003

CONTENTS:
1. Holonyak Receives 2003 IEEE Medal of Honor
2. Faster, Less Power-Hungry Chips on the Way
3. IEEE EDS Calls for Committee Nominations
4. Import Duty Imposed to Counter Korean Subsidies
5. Milestones of Solid-State Circuits Featured in New Virtual Museum
6. Electronic IEEE Fellow Nomination Process Introduced
7. New Standards Title Examines EMC Principles
8. Production Delay Won't Halt 0.15-micron Rollout
9. Conference Digest Covers Cutting-Edge Topics
10. Bioethics and the Brain: IEEE Spectrum Reports
11. Tough New Regulations Call for Engineers to Think Green
12. Have Fun at Work - Especially During the Tough Times
13. New Book Offers Insight into IC Design

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1. HOLONYAK RECEIVES 2003 IEEE MEDAL OF HONOR
Professor Nick Holonyak, Jr., from the University of Illinois (Urbana) Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, has been named the recipient of the 2003 IEEE Medal of Honor for a career of pioneering contributions to semiconductors. Perhaps best known as the inventor of the LED, Holonyak joined the IEEE as a student and has received many credits throughout his career, including the rank of IEEE Fellow. The IEEE Medal of Honor is the highest IEEE award, dating back to 1917. It is presented at the IEEE honors ceremony, held annually in June. Holonyak shares this achievement with past award winners, including Andrew Grove and Jack Kilby. To read more about Holonyak and his accomplishments, visit: www.spectrum.ieee.org/WEBONLY/publicfeature/jun03/med.html

The IEEE sponsors a wide range of awards and scholarships, available to members in many fields. For more information, visit: www.ieee.org/awards or www.ieee.org/scholarships

2. FASTER, LESS POWER-HUNGRY CHIPS ON THE WAY
Motorola Inc. has implemented a manufacturing process that yields 20-percent faster microprocessors that also use less power. The process, which uses a hydrogenated silicon oxycarbide film as the insulation between the chip's wires, was developed by Motorola engineers at the Dan Noble Center in Austin, Texas. The low-k dielectric film, called Black Diamond by its manufacturer, Applied Materials, reduces the capacitance of the wires in processors by up to 35 percent. Motorola already began shipping processors containing the new material in the first quarter of this year, beating competitors. www.motorola.com/mediacenter/news/detail/0,1958,2687_2175_23,00.html

For background on low-k insulating materials, see "Fast Films," from IEEE Spectrum magazine: www.spectrum.ieee.org/WEBONLY/publicfeature/feb03/film.html

3. IEEE EDS CALLS FOR COMMITTEE NOMINATIONS
The IEEE Electron Devices Society (EDS) is looking for candidates for election to its Administrative Committee (AdCom), the society's governing body. The IEEE-EDS AdCom has 22 members and meets twice annually. There are seven seats open for this year's election. The deadline for submission of nominations is 15 October 2003. Read more and make a nomination at: www.ieee.org/organizations/society/eds/adcom_nominations.html

4. IMPORT DUTY IMPOSED TO COUNTER KOREAN SUBSIDIES
South Korean memory chip maker Hynix Semiconductor, Inc. has been assessed an import duty of nearly 45 percent by the United States, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. The new duty was petitioned by U.S. chipmaker Micron Technology, Inc. as an effort to counter believed subsidies provided to the company by South Korea. Hynix, which has experienced significant recent financial challenges, can still potentially avoid the U.S. duty if the International Trade Commission (ITC) rules that subsidized South Korean competition has not hurt Micron. An ITC ruling is expected this Summer. Read more at: reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=technologyNews&storyID=2945725

5. MILESTONES OF SOLID-STATE CIRCUITS FEATURED IN NEW VIRTUAL MUSEUM
The IEEE Solid-state Circuits Society has launched the International Solid-state Circuits Conference (ISSCC) Virtual Museum, showcasing prominent papers in the field published over the last 50 years. Included in the online museum are the first phased-lock loop IC, the first converters that calibrate themselves, the first bipolar ECL logic and the first TTL logic circuits, and many other firsts, as well as links to original articles available through IEEE Xplore. Visit the ISSCC Virtual Museum at: sscs.org/History/isscc50

6. ELECTRONIC IEEE FELLOW NOMINATION PROCESS INTRODUCED
IEEE has launched a new online process where anyone may electronically submit nominations for the next class of IEEE Fellows. The IEEE Grade of Fellow is conferred by the Board of Directors upon persons with extraordinary records of accomplishments in any of the IEEE fields of interest. Nominated candidates must hold an active IEEE Senior Member grade at the time the nomination is submitted and must have completed five years of service in any grade of IEEE membership. Fellows nominations are due each year by 15 March. To find out more about IEEE Fellows, or to register to submit a nomination, visit: www.ieee.org/fellows

7. NEW STANDARDS TITLE EXAMINES EMC PRINCIPLES
The IEEE Standards Information Network and Elliott Laboratories are offering a new educational tool, the CD-ROM "Electromagnetic Compatibility Tutorial," for those looking to expand their knowledge of real-world EMC principles affecting everything from product design to regulatory compliance. Find out more at: shop.ieee.org/store/product.asp?prodno=SS1128
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8. PRODUCTION DELAY WON'T HALT 0.15-MICRON ROLLOUT
Despite a six-month delay in production of its 0.13-micron process, Silterra Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. claims it is still on track to unveil its 0.15-micron process in the second half of this year. Two factors were cited by the company for the delay: focus on processes such as RF and mixed-signal and more difficult than expected partnering contract negotiations for the technology were cited as reasons for the delay. The private company, based in Taiwan, said it hopes to be profitable in 2004 if the Integrated Circuit market sustains a current mild economic recovery. Read more at: www.eet.com/semi/news/OEG20030616S0114

9. CONFERENCE DIGEST COVERS CUTTING-EDGE TOPICS
The 2003 IEEE International Solid-state Circuits Conference covered such cutting-edge topics as multimedia signal processing, oversampled A/D converters, clock recovery and backplane transceivers, wireless PAN transceivers and low-power digital techniques. Buy the conference's digest of technical papers in the IEEE Online Catalog & Store at: shop.ieee.org/store/product.asp?prodno=CH37414
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10. BIOETHICS AND THE BRAIN: IEEE SPECTRUM REPORTS
New ways of imaging the human brain and developments in microelectronics are providing unprecedented capabilities for monitoring the brain and even for controlling brain function. Electrical activity in the brain can show whether a person is telling the truth. New imaging techniques will allow physicians to detect devastating diseases long before the diseases become clinically apparent. And researchers may, one day, find brain activity that correlates with behavior patterns such as tendencies toward alcoholism, aggression, pedophilia, or racism. But how reliable will the information be, how should it be used, and what will it do to our notion of privacy? Read more, from the June issue of IEEE Spectrum: www.spectrum.ieee.org/WEBONLY/publicfeature/jun03/bio.html

11. TOUGH NEW REGULATIONS CALL FOR ENGINEERS TO THINK GREEN
Tough new environmental regulations are changing the way engineers approach new product design and apply alternative materials to existing products. With some 30 U.S. states already having enacted electronic waste laws related to electronic product take back and recycling, change is in the wind at home. And companies that export products to foreign nations may face even more stringent regulations. Terry Costlow looks at the new rules and how they will affect engineers and the companies they work for, in the latest edition of IEEE-USA Today's Engineer: www.todaysengineer.org/May03/green.asp

12. HAVE FUN AT WORK - ESPECIALLY DURING THE TOUGH TIMES
Times are tough in today's workplace. Engineers face tremendous pressure to get their projects done successfully and on time, fearing they may lose their jobs if they don't. Further, businesses are cutting costs, which often leaves little to nothing for non-work-related activities. Nonetheless, Todd Yuzuriha says that you can still find inexpensive ways to make your workplace a fun one, and boost morale and productivity in the process. Read on, in the latest edition of IEEE-USA Today's Engineer: www.todaysengineer.org/May03/trends.asp

13. NEW BOOK OFFERS INSIGHT INTO IC DESIGN
Contemporary research from experts in the field of state-of-the-art integrated circuit (IC) design is compiled in a new book from Wiley-IEEE Press. Editor Raminderpal Singh says the specialized coverage in his "Signal Integrity Effects in Custom IC and ASIC Designs" provides understanding on overcoming serious problems in new, more complicated IC designs. Find out more at: www.wiley.com/remtitleinternational.cgi?isbn=0471150428
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WHAT'S NEW @ IEEE IN CIRCUITS is a monthly, opt-in email update designed to provide you with the latest news regarding IEEE activities, industry trends, career development tips, and new IEEE product releases. We welcome your feedback on this service.

Managing Editor: John Platt j.platt@ieee.org
Editor: Lyle Smith l.smith@ieee.org

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