Photo-conductive lens antennas (PCAs) exploit the ultra-short photoconductivity phenomenon of specific semiconductors in order to generate pulsed radiation in the THz regime. State of the art PCAs suffer from high dispersion and low radiation efficiency over the large generated bandwidth due to the poor coupling between the antenna and the dielectric lens. In this work, a leaky lens PCA is proposed to overcome these issues. The presented structure, indeed, aims at a 1:15 bandwidth (0.1 THz – 1.5 THz). The design, assembly and manufacture of a LT-GaAs membrane-based leaky lens PCA are shown and discussed together with the measurement of the radiated power.@en

Clenbuterol is a chiral, selective β₂-adrenergic agonist. It is administered as a racemic mixture for therapeutic purposes (as a bronchodilator or prospective neuroprotective agent), but also for non-therapeutic uses (athletic performance enhancement, cattle growth promotion). Aim of the present study is to develop an original, enantioselective workflow for the analysis of clenbuterol enantiomers in urine microsamples. An innovative miniaturised sampling procedure by volumetric absorptive microsampling (VAMS) and a microsample pretreatment strategy based on stop-and-go extraction (StAGE) tips were developed and coupled to an original, chiral analytical method, exploiting liquid chromatography with triple quadrupole detection (LC-MS/MS). The method was validated, with satisfactory results: good linearity (r² ≥ 0.9995) and LOQ values (0.3 ng/mL) were found over suitable concentration ranges. Extraction yield (>87 %), precision (RSD < 4.3 %) and matrix effect (85–90 %) were all within acceptable levels of confidence. After validation, the method was applied to the determination of clenbuterol in dried urine sampled by VAMS from patients taking the drug for therapeutic reasons. Analyte content ranged from 0.8 to 2.5 ng/mL per single enantiomer, with substantial retention of the original drug racemic composition. The VAMS-StAGE-LC-MS/MS workflow seems to be suitable for future application to anti-doping testing of clenbuterol in urine.

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The discovery of the extremely shallow amorphous boron-crystalline silicon heterojunction occurred during the development of highly sensitive, hard and robust detectors for low-penetration-depth ionizing radiation, such as ultraviolet photons and low-energy electrons (below 1 keV). For many years it was believed that the junction created by the chemical vapor deposition of amorphous boron on n-type crystalline silicon was a shallow p-n junction, although experimental results could not provide evidence for such a conclusion. Only recently, quantum-mechanics based modelling revealed the unique nature and the formation mechanism of this new junction. Here, we review the initiation and the history of understanding the a-B/c-Si interface (henceforth called the “boron-silicon junction”), as well as its importance for the microelectronics industry, followed by the scientific perception of the new junctions. Future developments and possible research directions are also discussed.

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The time evolution of voltages and currents in a pulsed photo conductive antenna (PCA) source is evaluated resorting to a rigorous procedure that stems from semiconductor physics first, to define the phenomena involved in the generation of the photocurrent, and then relies on an equivalent circuit in time domain, providing a direct estimation of the power generated by the PCA as well as its spectral distribution. The circuit model is validated via a campaign of measurements of standard PC antenna sources. The saturation phenomena in the THz radiated power occurring at large optical excitation levels, previously observed by the scientific community and associated to different phenomena, are accurately predicted by the present method, which ascribe their main cause to the feedback from the antenna: indeed, the electromagnetic field generated by the device tend to reduce the strength of the forcing field used to accelerate the photo-carriers.

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Volumetric absorptive microsampling (VAMS) and dried urine spot (DUS) strategies were applied for the collection of dried microsamples for anti-doping testing of low-stability peptide hormones and growth factors prohibited by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Drying, storage and transport conditions, as well as pretreatment steps, were optimised before liquid chromatography - tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) analysis. The analytical method has been fully validated in terms of sensitivity (limits of quantitation 0.3−10 ng/mL), precision (RSD% < 6.6 %) and extraction yields (78–91 %). Dried microsample stability studies (90 days) have been performed and compared to fluid urine stability. Significantly higher losses have been observed in fluid urine stored at −20 °C (up to 55 %) and −80 °C (up to 29 %) than in dried urine microsamples stored at room temperature (< 19 %). The final microsampling and analysis protocols allow the collection of urine microvolumes, unlikely to be tampered, stably storable and shippable with no particular precautions for possible anti-doping testing of prohibited peptides and hormones.

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Semiconductor (SC)-based bulk absorbers operating in the (sub-) THz range are discussed. The conductivities of the bulk media are described by the Drude model for electron gas where the electron density is controlled. The Drude model predicts the existence of two frequencies of interest: one associated with the scattering time of the electrons and a second associated with the plasma frequency. The dimensions of the absorbers for a specific frequency range can be minimized by tuning the doping levels. Eventually, the maximum ohmic absorption from a bulk material is achieved when the real part of the characteristic impedance of the absorber is matched to the one of the surrounding medium and the imaginary part of the characteristic impedance is high so that the power entering the material is actually transformed in heat. Using a classic transmission line representation, a matching layer is introduced to further increase the absorption capabilities of an SC slab. Measurements using a time-domain spectroscopy (TDS) system show the increased accuracy of the Drude model @en

Silicon carbide (SiC) ceramic membranes are of particular significance for wastewater treatment due to their mechanical strength, chemical stability, and antifouling ability. Currently, the membranes are prepared by SiC-particle sintering at a high temperature. The production suffers from long production time and high costs. In this paper, we demonstrated a more economical way to produce SiC ultrafiltration membranes based on low-pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD). SiC was deposited in the pores of alumina microfiltration supports using two precursors (SiH₂Cl₂ and C₂H₂/H₂) at a relatively low temperature of 750 °C. Different deposition times varying from 0 to 150 min were used to tune membrane pore size. The pure water permeance of the membranes only decreased from 350 Lm⁻²h⁻¹bar⁻¹ to 157 Lm⁻²h⁻¹bar⁻¹ when the deposition time was increased from 0 to 120 min due to the narrowing of membrane pore size from 71 to 47 nm. Increasing the deposition time from 120 to 150 min mainly resulted in the formation of a thin, dense layer on top of the support instead of in the pores. Oil-in-water emulsion filtration experiments illustrated that both the reversible and irreversible fouling of the SiC-deposited UF membrane was considerably lower as compared to the pristine alumina support. The unique feature that pore sizes decrease linearly as a function of SiC deposition time creates opportunities to produce low-fouling SiC membranes with tuned pore sizes on relatively cheap support.

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Recently, we have experimentally demonstrated the generation of mW average power, in the 100-600GHz bandwidth, by photoconductive sources using a connected array of dipoles coherently fed via a free-standing micro-lens array. In this contribution, we extend these sources to a much wider bandwidth reaching 5THz, without compromising the radiated power, by resorting to a tight array periodicity of 15Ϝm between the array elements and the use of an integrated 3D-printed micro-lens array to focus the laser power.

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A pulsed photoconductive terahertz (THz) source is presented that is able to radiate milliwatt (mW) level average power over a large bandwidth, by exploiting both the optical and electrical properties of photoconductive sources and the ultrawideband properties of connected antenna arrays. An optical system composed of a microlenses array splits the laser beam into N×N  spots that host the active excitation of the antenna arrays. An “ad hoc” network is introduced to bias the array active spots in order to implement a connected antenna array configuration. The array feeds a silicon lens to increase the directivity of the radiated THz beam. A dipole and a slot array are designed. Prototypes have been fabricated and measured. Power and spectrum measurements of the prototypes are in excellent agreement with the expected results. The proposed solutions achieve excellent power radiation levels by exploiting accurate electromagnetic design. Thus, they can offer enhancements to any active system relying on pulsed photoconductive antennas.

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A novel pulsed photoconductive THz source is presented that is able to radiate mW-level average powers, over a large bandwidth by exploiting both the optical and electrical properties of photoconductive sources and the ultrawideband properties of connected antenna arrays. An optical system composed of a micro-lenses array splits the laser beam into N × N spots that host the active excitation of the antenna arrays. An 'ad hoc' network has been adopted to bias the array active spots in order to implement a connected antenna array configuration. The array feeds a silicon lens to increase the directivity of the radiated THz beam. A slot array prototype has been designed, fabricated, and measured. The proposed solutions achieve excellent power radiation levels by making use of an accurate electromagnetic design. This solution can offer enhancements to any active system relying on pulsed photoconductive antennas.

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Recently, powerful, reliable and cost-effective THz radiation photoconductive-emitters have been developed, providing up to 1mW of pulsed power in the range of frequencies between 0.1 and 0.7THz. In this paper we study the potential use of such sources for future pulsed radar systems aiming at stand-off imaging applications. Specifically, we investigate the image frame rate and Signal to Noise Ratio budget that can be obtained using these photoconductive sources. It emerges that adopting a receiving array of 14 times 14 simeq 200 elements, a 3D image with a Field of View (FoV) of 6cm times 6cm times 100cm and resolution of 4mm times 4mm times 1mm can be generated in 80Hz with a SNR { min}= 30dB, including realistic quasi-optical channel efficiencies.

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Pulsed terahertz time-domain systems rely on antennas printed on photoconductive substrates (PCA), which show extremely fast conductivity transients when illuminated by femto-seconds laser pulses. This work introduces a time domain representation of the PCA transmitter that accounts for time evolving voltages at the terminals of the photoconductive gap; such model is able to explain the saturation phenomena observed in measurements performed under high power laser excitations that previous models could not account for.

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A novel, simple, low-cost method for the void-free filling of high aspect ratio (HAR) through-silicon-vias (TSVs) is presented. For the first-time pure indium, a type-I superconductor metal, is used to fill HAR vias, 300 to 500 μm in depth and 50 to 100 μm in diameter. The low electrical resistivity achieved without sintering, its reproducibility and straightforward processing steps, and the short time required to fill large arrays of vias at wafer scale - all make this method one of the simplest and quickest options for filling HAR TSVs for MEMS 3D integration. Moreover, the low melting point (∼ 150 °C), malleability and superconductivity at 3.41 K make indium an interesting option in 3D interconnects for connecting quantum devices operating below 4 K.

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Silicon can be printed using liquid silicon ink, which is a mixture of polymerized cyclopentasilane (CPS) and a solvent. Thermal annealing higher than 350oC of this material, however, was necessary, to convert it to solid silicon, which prevented its usage on inexpensive substrates with a limited thermal budget. We review a novel method that forms polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) patterns directly on paper using the same liquid silicon with doctor-blade coating and local irradiation of excimer-laser with room temperature process. We review also the process and electrical properties of poly-Si TFTs fabricated on the paper. This technique will breakthrough the printed electronics by enabling applications such as fast printed electronics that are inexpensive, fully-recyclable, biodegradable and even edible.@en

Optically pumped pulsed THz emitters exploit the transient motion of photo-generated charge carriers in semiconductors, to produce, coupled to micro-antenna, radiated power over a wide bandwidth up to the THz frequencies. The radiation performance of the antenna greatly affects dispersion of the energy spectrum generated by the photoconductive source and if not properly designed it causes low radiated power. This work presents the design, the fabrication process, the electromagnetic and the thermal analyses of a pulsed photoconductive micro-antenna based on the leaky lens antenna concept. This device shows high radiation efficiency over a band ranging from 0.1 to 1.5 THz, thus being a suitable emitter for THz time-domain sensing system.

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Printing of electronics is pursued as a low-cost alternative to conventional manufacturing processes. In addition, owing to relatively low process temperatures, flexible substrates can be used enabling novel applications. Among flexible substrates, paper was found to be a particularly interesting candidate, since it has an order of magnitude lower price than low-cost polymer alternatives, and is biodegradable. As ink materials, organic and metal-oxide semiconductors are thoroughly being investigated; however, they lack in electric performance compared to silicon in terms of device mobility, reliability, and energy efficiency. In recent years, liquid precursors for silicon were found and used to create polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si). However, fabrication of transistors on top of low-cost flexible substrates such as paper has remained an outstanding challenge. Here we demonstrate both p-channel and n-channel poly-Si thin-film transistors (TFTs) fabricated directly on top of paper with field-effect mobilities of 6.2 and 2.0 cm2/V s, respectively. Many fabrication challenges have been overcome by limiting the maximum process temperature to approximately 100 °C, and avoiding liquid chemicals commonly used for etching and cleaning. Patterning of poly-Si has been achieved by additive selective crystallization of the precursor film using an excimer laser. This work serves as a proof of concept, and has the potential to further improve device performance. Owing to the low-cost, biodegradable nature of paper, and the high performance, reliability, and energy efficiency of poly-Si TFTs, this work opens a pathway toward truly low-cost, low-power, recyclable applications including smart packages, biodegradable health monitoring units, flexible displays, and disposable sensor nodes.@en

Solution-processing has gained widespread attention over the past years due to their potential low-cost advantage in terms of fabrication of electronics as well as application to flexible electronics. Cyclopentasilane is used for the solution-based processing of silicon. As a liquid, the material has the potential to be applied directly on low-cost flexible substrates that generally have a low thermal budget, by annealing the liquid using an excimer laser treatment. So far, electronics based on this material have only been demonstrated on rigid and high cost substrates. In this work, silicon has been applied as a solution on top of a paper substrate and processed into PMOS and NMOS thin-film transistors (TFTs). The maximum fabrication temperature was limited to approximately 100° C. By being able to fabricate devices on top of a paper substrate, a pathway opens towards new applications that combine the true low-cost and biodegradability with the high performance of silicon electronics.

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Currently, research has been focusing on printing and laser crystallization of cyclosilanes, bringing to life polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) thin-film transistors (TFTs) with outstanding properties. However, the synthesis of these Sibased inks is generally complex and expensive. Here, we prove that a polysilane ink, obtained as a byproduct of silicon gases and derivatives, can be used successfully for the synthesis of poly-Si by laser annealing, at room temperature, and for n- and p-channel TFTs. The devices, fabricated according to CMOS compatible processes at 350 °C, showed field effect mobilities up to 8 and 2 cm2/(V s) for n- and p-type TFTs, respectively. The presented method combines a low-cost coating technique with the usage of recycled material, opening a route to a convenient and sustainable production of large-area, flexible, and even disposable/single-use electronics.@en

Printing of electronics has been gaining a lot of attention over the past decade as a low cost alternative to conventional electronic fabrication methods. A significant development in this area was the possibility to print a silicon precursor, polydihydrosilane, which can directly be transformed into polycrystalline silicon by an excimer laser treatment. Due to the limited laser heat diffusion, low-cost flexible substrates such as plastics and even paper could be used that typically have low thermal budgets. Since the silicon precursor is sensitive to ultraviolet light and may transform in a photochemical reaction, the question arises whether the excimer laser crystallization is predominantly photochemical or rather a thermal reaction. In this work, a model is developed and reflected to experimental data, to understand the physics behind the process. Through finite-element analysis and experimental characterizations it was observed that the physics behind the process was predominantly thermal, and that instead of an intermediate transition to a-Si, a direct transformation to poly-Si exists. By understanding this process, the treatment can be optimized or more efficient tools can be used that would enable a low cost production of high performing silicon devices@en