What's New @ IEEE in Circuits

VOLUME 4 NUMBER 11 NOVEMBER 2003

CONTENTS:

1. Germs That Build Circuits: IEEE Spectrum Reports
2. Researchers Strike Gold (Nitride, That Is)
3. Proceedings of the IEEE Targets Nanotechnology and Nanoelectronics
4. Recruit A New IEEE Member, Earn Rewards
5. New IEEE Conference Addresses Consumer Communications and Networking
6. Free Newsletters Monitor IEEE Standards Activities Worldwide
7. Revision of IEEE Verilog Standard Passes Major Milestone
8. Record-Breakers Break Own Record for Fastest Transistor
9. Backscatter: Accidents Waiting to Happen
10. Study Finds IEEE Information Drives New Patents
11. New Proceedings Cover Latest in Integrated Circuits and Systems Design
12. IEEE Election Results: W. Cleon Anderson 2004 President-Elect
13. Voltage References Addressed in IEEE Press Book
14. Vittoz Recognized for Pioneering Contributions

IEEE MEMBERSHIP: OPENING THE WORLD OF TECHNOLOGY
Don't Miss Out! Renew Your Membership for 2004:
www.ieee.org/renew

1. GERMS THAT BUILD CIRCUITS: IEEE SPECTRUM REPORTS
Can a virus be used to build a transistor? That's exactly what Dr. Angela Belcher is researching in her laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Belcher is forcing evolution to genetically engineer and reproduce viruses that can adhere to semiconductors. The combination of virus and semiconductor, plus DNA to act as the blueprint, will then engage in biological self-assembly to produce nanoelectronic components. An article in the November issue of IEEE Spectrum discusses the technology and its implications: www.spectrum.ieee.org/WEBONLY/publicfeature/nov03/1103bio.html

2. RESEARCHERS STRIKE GOLD (NITRIDE, THAT IS)
A twenty-year quest to develop a cheaper substitute for gold has been solved by a team of researchers led by the University of Newcastle in Sweden. The discovery of gold nitride could result in a cheap method of manufacturing gold-plated electronic components without the pollution usually associated with processing gold. Read more: physicsweb.org/article/news/7/10/14

3. PROCEEDINGS OF THE IEEE TARGETS NANOTECHNOLOGY AND NANOELECTRONICS
Nanotechnology and nanoelectronics are the focus of the November issue of Proceedings of the IEEE, the flagship journal of the IEEE. The editors of the issue put forth that nanotechnology is quickly becoming mature with growing applications in industry, medicine, scientific research, aerospace, and other areas. New nanostructures or nanodevices in the scale of 0.1-50 nm are under aggressive development with the promise to supplement the real-world impacts of silicon technologies. In 18 papers, the Proceedings of the IEEE special issue covers key aspects of nanotechnology, from an overview of the field to nanotube research, through self-assembled quantum dot arrays and interconnect / circuits / architecture discussions of nanosystems. To read the editor's overview, or find out how to subscribe, visit: www.ieee.org/pubs/proceedings

4. RECRUIT A NEW IEEE MEMBER, EARN REWARDS
What's better than helping your colleagues enjoy the same IEEE membership benefits you are already experiencing? How about getting paid for it? From now until 15 August 2004, you can earn a small financial "thank you" from the IEEE by recruiting new IEEE members. The thank you will come in the form of credits that can be used towards IEEE or Society membership dues, or towards the purchase of IEEE services and products. For program rules and recruiting tips, visit: www.ieee.org/mgm

5. NEW IEEE CONFERENCE ADDRESSES CONSUMER COMMUNICATIONS AND NETWORKING
This January, a new IEEE conference comes to Las Vegas before the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES). The 2004 IEEE Consumer Communications and Networking Conference (CCNC), to be held 5 to 8 January, offers an opportunity for consumer electronic manufacturers (including those responsible for selling consumer devices, products, and services) to join with communications / networking manufacturers and service providers. Yoshiaki Kushiki, Managing Director of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., is the keynote speaker for CCNC, which also includes numerous sessions and panels. CCNC 2004 registration includes complimentary admission to the CES tradeshow floor. For more information, or to register, visit: www.ccnc2004.org/

Don't miss the next conference you need for your career. IEEE sponsors more than 300 technical conferences and workshops each year, highlighting the latest technological advances. Find events through the IEEE ConferenceSearch Web site at: www.ieee.org/conferencesearch/

6. FREE NEWSLETTERS MONITOR IEEE STANDARDS ACTIVITIES WORLDWIDE
StandardsAsia Today, StandardsAmericas Today, and StandardsEurope Today are the latest free opt-in newsletters from the IEEE Standards Association (IEEE-SA). The newsletters support those in Europe, Asia, and the Americas who want to learn about technical standards and participate in IEEE standards development. Technical coverage includes information technology, telecommunications, power and energy, and transportation technologies. To sign up, visit: www.ieee.org/portal/cms_docs/geoport/newsletters/Multiple_signup.html

7. REVISION OF IEEE VERILOG STANDARD PASSES MAJOR MILESTONE
The initiative to revise IEEE P1364™, "Standard for Verilog Hardware Description Language," has passed a major milestone with the donation of nine substantial intellectual properties from four companies and the receipt of more than 50 additional enhancement suggestions for the standard. The revision effort seeks to clarify ambiguities and unify the various extension proposals to create a single, next-generation Verilog® language. The overriding goal is to give chip designers and verification engineers better ways to develop integrated circuits by leveraging higher levels of abstraction. The donated properties will play a major role in accomplishing this objective. For more on this, visit: standards.ieee.org/announcements/pr_p1364donations.html

8. RECORD-BREAKERS BREAK OWN RECORD FOR FASTEST TRANSISTOR
The world's fastest transistor now clocks in at a frequency of 509 gigahertz. Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, developers of the previous fastest transistor, broke their own record by developing a new method of lateral scaling to lessen carrier transit time. The team was led by Milton Feng, the university's Holonyak Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering. For more information, visit: compoundsemiconductor.net/articles/news/7/10/19/1

9. BACKSCATTER: ACCIDENTS WAITING TO HAPPEN
Why do systems fail when they shouldn't? Is it because designers are not aware of previous failures, or because they are willing to accept the risks based on prior successes? Don Christiansen takes a look at what can happen when we don't learn from our mistakes, in the latest edition of IEEE-USA Today's Engineer: www.todaysengineer.org/oct03/backscatter.asp

10. STUDY FINDS IEEE INFORMATION DRIVES NEW PATENTS
A study commissioned by IEEE has found that patents issued by the U.S. Patent office are citing scientific literature, primarily IEEE, more than ever before. Patents today are based on the fundamental source -- scientific and technical literature -- a dramatic shift from just 20 years ago when patents issued in information technology cited only previous patents. The study finds that new technology is increasingly dependent upon papers published in IEEE journals, and that the increase in referencing from patented technology to IEEE publications is broad-based. Read the other findings, or view the report at: www.ieee.org/patentcitation

11. NEW PROCEEDINGS COVER LATEST IN INTEGRATED CIRCUITS AND SYSTEMS DESIGN
If you couldn't make it to Sao Paulo, Brazil this year for the 16th Symposium on Integrated Circuits and Systems Design, don't worry. The proceedings of the conference are now available from the IEEE Online Catalog & Store. The proceedings include more than 50 papers, as well as the symposium's three tutorials. The selected papers are organized into four main topics: RF and analog design; FPGAs and digital design; computer-aided design tools and algorithms; and hardware / software codesign, IP cores, and SoC issues. To purchase, visit: shop.ieee.org/store/product.asp?prodno=PR2009
***What's New Special - Use Code WNI for 15% Off - order instructions below***

12. IEEE ELECTION RESULTS: W. CLEON ANDERSON 2004 PRESIDENT-ELECT
W. Cleon Anderson, chief project engineer at L-3 Communication Systems-West in Salt Lake City, UT, has been elected 2004 IEEE president-elect. Anderson will begin serving as IEEE president on 1 January 2005, succeeding 2004 IEEE President Arthur W. Winston. Anderson, an IEEE Senior Member, joined as a student in 1970. He has served two terms on the IEEE Board of Directors, from 1999-2000 as Region 6 director and currently as vice president of Regional Activities (2002-2003).

For a complete list of newly elected officers, including division delegates and directors and officers of the IEEE Standards Association, IEEE-USA and Technical Activities, go to: www.ieee.org/newsinfo/elections2003.xml

13. VOLTAGE REFERENCES ADDRESSED IN IEEE PRESS BOOK
The foremost tutorial resource on the design of integrated voltage references, from theory to real-life practice, is available this month from Wiley-IEEE Press. "Voltage References: From Diodes to Precision High-Order Bandgap Circuits" by Gabriel Alfonso Ricon-Mora covers the conceptual history and scope of practical design issues behind marketable and precision integrated voltage references. For more information, or to purchase, visit: www.wiley.com/remtitleinternational.cgi?isbn=0471143367
***IEEE members: Receive a 15% discount on any Wiley-IEEE Press titles. Use code 18493 at checkout***

14. VITTOZ RECOGNIZED FOR PIONEERING CONTRIBUTIONS
The 2004 IEEE Solid-State Circuits Technical Field Award will be awarded to Eric Vittoz for "for pioneering contributions to low-power device modeling and CMOS circuit design." Vittoz holds more than 25 U.S. patents and has authored more than 36 IEEE publications. Read more about his contributions to the field: www.ieee.org/organizations/pubs/newsletters/sscs/oct03/vittoz.html

AWARD HONORS UNDERGRADUATE TEACHER - In other awards news, Richard Jaeger of Auburn University will be presented the IEEE Undergraduate Teaching Award 2004 for inspirational teaching at the IEEE Solid-State Circuits Conference in San Francisco in February. Read more: www.ieee.org/organizations/pubs/newsletters/sscs/oct03/jaeger.html

***WHAT'S NEW @ IEEE SPECIAL - 15% OFF SELECT IEEE PRODUCTS LISTED IN THIS ISSUE!***
As a thank you to WHAT'S NEW @ IEEE subscribers, our readers receive a 15-percent discount on the purchase of any of the specially noted books and conference proceedings listed in this newsletter. When ordering from the IEEE Online Catalog & Store, located at shop.ieee.org, include the code WNI in the special instructions field at "final checkout." If ordering by phone, provide the code WNI to your customer service representative. Offer expires on 31 Dec. 2003.

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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

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