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June 11 to June 15, 2007

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AT A GLANCE - MEETINGS AT NIST

MONDAY - 6/11
10:30 AM - R&D To Deliver Practical Results: Extending Moore's Law
12:00 PM - NCW Brown Bag - Visit Spain
2:00 PM - Semiconductor Electronics Division Seminar
TUESDAY - 6/12
1:30 PM - Precise Calibration of Astronomical Instrumentation: An Essential Step for Precision Cosmology
3:00 PM - Measurement advances for identifying chemically amplified photoresist materials limits
3:00 PM - Cost-Effective Techniques for User-Session-Based Testing Of Web Applications
WEDNESDAY - 6/13
No Scheduled Events
THURSDAY - 6/14
10:45 AM - Branching - the long and short of it
3:30 PM - Space Suits and Meteorites
FRIDAY - 6/15
No Scheduled Events

MEETINGS AT NIST

6/11 -- MONDAY

10:30 AM - NIST COLLOQUIUM SERIES : R&D To Deliver Practical Results: Extending Moore's Law
NOTE: Different Day Over forty years after its introduction, Moore’s Law continues to be the best predictor of future trends in silicon process scaling. Significant shifts in technology have occurred during this time to achieve increased performance and power efficiency. Advances in materials, processes, device structures, architectures, packages and systems will continue to enable the future. A research and development approach that leverages university and consortium research along with a strong, targeted, internal research organization will be discussed. The required investments necessitate a smooth transfer of ideas into development, and from development into high volume manufacturing. Use of integrated development and manufacturing capabilities enables co-optimizing the end product and manufacturing process. The model will be validated by considering Intel products and technical results.
William Holt , Senior Vice President and General Manager, Technology and Manufacturing Group, Intel Corporation.
Administration Building, Red Auditorium. (NIST Contact: Kum Ham, 301-975-4203, kham@nist.gov)
Special Assistance Available


12:00 PM - OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR, NIST SEMINAR: NCW Brown Bag - Visit Spain
. . , ..
Administration Bldg, Lecture Rm. B. (NIST Contact: Suzie Price, 301-975-3827, suzie.price@nist.gov)


2:00 PM - SEMICONDUCTOR ELECTRONICS DIVISION SEMINAR: Semiconductor Electronics Division Seminar
MEMS took a while to realize the promise foreseen by Feynman in his 1959 visionary talk: “There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom”. However, 30 years since the first MEMS devices were realized by Nathanson and 20 years since the term MEMS was coined is not a long time for as diverse a technology as MEMS to develop into a multi-$B realty. We now find several major markets served in high volume by important MEMS products. There are pressure and acceleration sensors, Microdisplays and Ink Jet printers, Bio-Chips and Chem-Chips, with microphones and Direct View displays now emerging in large numbers. Photonic devices held out great promise in the 1995-2000 time period boosted largely by the Telecomm bubble and depressed thereafter by the same. However, there remains a fundamentally good match of MEMS and photons that is real. Hence, the near IR MEMS device technology developed for Telecomm is finding applications both in re-emerging Telecomm applications as well as areas as diverse as spectrometers, test systems and important new displays. MEMS-based light modulators are capable of very fast switching speeds, enabling a wide range of color and grey scale. High volume projection micro-display applications such as the DLP are now being followed by exciting direct view displays. MEMS-based light modulators are also capable of extremely high optical transmission, enabling displays with very low power consumption. This is a critical requirement for portable consumer electronics manufacturers, as the rapid convergence of voice, data and video is driving the need for displays with both high quality optical performance and very low power consumption. Breakthrough design and manufacturing of MEMS-based light modulators are demonstrating extremely attractive combinations of image quality and low power consumption, which are uniquely positioned to enable the rapid adoption of next generation portable media based features and services in cell phone handsets, portable media players and mobile PCs. This talk will review the past and look into the future of MEMS in optics.
Richard Payne , VP MicroFabrication Pixtronix, Inc.
Technology Building, Room A362. (NIST Contact: Michael Gaitan, 301-975-2070, gaitan@nist.gov)



6/12 -- TUESDAY

1:30 PM - OPTICAL TECHNOLOGY DIVISION SEMINAR: Precise Calibration of Astronomical Instrumentation: An Essential Step for Precision Cosmology
I will describe the current state of calibration of astronomical instruments, and the possibilities for achieving a factor of ten improvement for upcoming large scale ground-based surveys such as PanSTARRS and the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST). There are two main aspects to increased precision: 1) using laboratory detectors from NIST as the fundamental metrology reference for relative flux calibration vs. wavelength, and 2) improving our measurements of the optical transmission function of the atmosphere. Our ability to characterize the nature of the Dark Energy rests on our making progress on both of these issues.
Christopher Stubbs , Harvard University .
221 Bldg, Rm. B145. (NIST Contact: Gerald Fraser, 301-975-3797, gerald.fraser@nist.gov)


3:00 PM - POLYMERS DIVISION SEMINAR: Measurement advances for identifying chemically amplified photoresist materials limits
The dissolution of partially deprotected chemically amplified photoresists is the final step in printing lithographic features. Since this process step can be tuned independently from the design of the photoresist chemistry, measurements of the dissolution behavior of photoresists may provide needed insights towards improving line-edge roughness (LER). The residual swelling fraction (RSF) is the remaining photoresist that swells rather than dissolves in a lithographically printed feature. The latent-image shape, photoresist chemistry and composition, photoacid concentration, nanoscale deprotection morphology, and aqueous hydroxide developer properties contribute to the RSF. One measurement challenge is quantifying the RSF spatial extent at the line-edge. Contrast variant neutron reflectivity and quartz crystal microbalance methods were developed and applied to quantify the nanometer-scale spatial distribution of resist and aqueous base developer near a developed model line edge. The main results regarding model 193 nm photoresists will be presented as well as predictions tested by 193 nm photolithography if time permits.
Vivek Prabhu , NIST.
224 Bldg, Rm. A312 CR. (NIST Contact: Jan Obrzut, 301-975-6845, jano@nist.gov)


3:00 PM - ITL SEMINAR SERIES: Cost-Effective Techniques for User-Session-Based Testing Of Web Applications
Software testing is a major bottleneck in the software development process. Testing is often not comprehensive due to limited time resources during product development, thus leading to huge losses for companies in the event of an unexpected failure. New programming domains require new techniques for effective systematic testing. One such programming domain that has gained prominence in the past few years is a set of languages and software architectures for developing and deploying web-based applications. As web applications evolve and their usage increases, their complexity also increases, thus creating a great demand for techniques and tools to ensure well-tested reliable applications. Low reliability can result in serious, detrimental effects for businesses, government, and consumers, as they have become increasingly dependent on the Internet for routine daily operations. In previous work, the speaker has designed, implemented, and empirically evaluated practical techniques to test web applications by leveraging and efficiently filtering field data. In this talk, she will present a test suite reduction approach that allows for scalable user-session-based testing of web applications and the different test requirements we used for reduction. She will also present the design of her automated web testing framework and the experimental studies conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the reduced suites. She will conclude the talk with new research directions that she is currently pursuing. Bio: Dr. Sreedevi Sampath is an Assistant Professor in the Information Systems Department at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Sreedevi earned her Ph.D. in 2006 in Computer and Information Sciences from the University of Delaware under the advisement of Dr. Lori Pollock. She received her M.S. in 2002 from the University of Delaware in Computer and Information Sciences and received her B.E. degree from Osmania University in Computer Science and Engineering in 2000. Her research interests are broadly in the areas of software testing, web applications and software maintenance. Her Ph.D. research has focused on developing cost-effective techniques for user-session-based testing of web applications. She is also interested in exploring uses of web application usage data, regression testing of web applications, test case generation for web applications, and testing for security in applications. Bio: Radia Perlman is a Sun Fellow at Sun Microsystems, working on network and security protocols.She invented many of the basic algorithms that make today's network infrastructure robust and scalable. She is author of "Interconnections: Bridges, Routers, Switches, and Internetworking Protocols", and coauthor of "Network Security: Private Communication in a Public World", both of which are widely used both as textbooks in universities and for engineers to learn the field. She holds over 80 patents, a PhD in computer science from MIT, and an honorary doctorate from KTH, the Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. She recently was given a lifetime achievement award by Usenix, and named SVIPLA (Silicon Valley Intellectual Property Law Association) Inventor of the year.
Dr. Sreedevi Sampath , Information Systems Department, University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
Administration Bldg, Lecture Rm. B. (NIST Contact: Larry Reeker, 301-975-5147, larry.reeker@nist.gov)



6/13 -- WEDNESDAY

No Scheduled Events

6/14 -- THURSDAY

10:45 AM - NIST CENTER FOR NEUTRON RESEARCH SEMINAR: Branching - the long and short of it
Complex branched structures can be described in terms of scaling features to yield surprising insight into the static and dynamic properties and mechanisms of formation. This scaling model considers that ramified structures can be decomposed into a topological network of branch sites and a tortuous path through the structure. In polymers this simple decomposition allows the resolution of thermodynamic and topological features, for example. We find that weakly branched (long chain branched) polymers display a tortuous path identical with linear chains. In these cases the tortuous path allows quantification of the mole fraction branching. While the model is general; specific emphasis will be given to a discussion of the use of this model in static neutron and x-ray scattering (SANS and SAXS). The scaling description can be applied to a wide range of structures and examples will be given from hyperbranched polymers, cyclic polymers, long chain branched polyolefins, star polymers, ceramic and carbon aggregates, vesicles and proteins (if there is time). The limitations of this approach, especially for extremely polydisperse systems and systems with collapsed 3d structures such as some dendrimers will be discussed.
Gregory Beaucage , Prof. of Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Cincinnati.
Bldg. 235, E100 (Large Conf. room). (NIST Contact: Boualem Hammouda, 301-975-3961, boualem.hammouda@nist.gov)


3:30 PM - SURF SUMMER SEMINAR SERIES: Space Suits and Meteorites
Dr. Dean Eppler is a field geologist by training and has become a space suit test subject (AKA crash-test dummy) by accident. Over the last 10 years, his geologic field experience has been utilized by NASA to test a variety of prototype space suits and hardware in order to develop the future space suit systems that will ultimately be used on the Moon and Mars. This work has led him to such diverse locations as the Arizona desert, the Canadian arctic, and the Antarctic Polar Plateau, testing space suits, rovers, evaluating instrument deployment, developing a feel for exploration logistics, and cruising the blue ice of the Polar Plateau looking for meteorites. Dr. Eppler's talk will discuss these experiences and the twist and turns in his career that led him to the inside of a space suit and back of a snowmobile in Antarctica.
Dr. Dean Eppler , NASA Johnson Space Center, SAIC Exploration Office, Houston, TX, dean.b.eppler@nasa.gov.
Administration Bldg, Red Auditorium. (NIST Contact: Anita Sweigert, 301-975-4201, anita.sweigert@nist.gov)
Special Assistance; Contact A. Sweigert a week in advance.



6/15 -- FRIDAY

No Scheduled Events

ADVANCE NOTICE

6/25/07 9:00 AM - METALLURGY DIVISION SEMINAR: IEEE Magnetism in Nanotechnology & Electronics Conference
The IEEE Magnetics Society Chapter of the Northern Virginia/Washington DC is organizing the IMAGINE Conference 2007 to provide an occasion for the magnetism researchers in this region and nearby to meet, interact, and exchange ideas. In addition, this is a good opportunity for postdoc/junior researchers and graduate students to present their research and gain exposure in the magnetism community.
IEEE IMAGINE , CONFERENCE.
Administration Bldg, Red Auditorium. (NIST Contact: Wing Tat Pong, 301-975-8876, ppong@nist.gov) http://ewh.ieee.org/r2/wash_nova/mags/ieeeimagine/



MEETINGS ELSEWHERE



6/11 -- MONDAY

11:00 AM - CARNEGIE INSTITUTION OF WASHINGTON/GEOPHYSICAL LAB. SEMINAR: WHY IS HALOBACTERIUM SP. STR. NRC-1 SO RADIATION RESISTANT?: A MOLECULAR-LEVEL ANALYSIS OF THE CELLULAR RESPONSE TO OXIDATIVE STRESS IN A MODEL HALOPHILE
A. Kish , Univ. of Maryland.
Bldg, Rm. .
Greenewalt Bldg., GL-DTM Grounds, Carnegie Institution of Washington, DC. (NIST Contact: . ., 202-478-8900, seminar@lists.ciw.edu)




6/12 -- TUESDAY

No Scheduled Events

6/13 -- WEDNESDAY

No Scheduled Events

6/14 -- THURSDAY

No Scheduled Events

6/15 -- FRIDAY

No Scheduled Events

ADVANCE NOTICE

No Scheduled Events

TALKS BY NIST PERSONNEL


KRAMIDA, A. : ATOMIC SPECTRA BIBLIOGRAPHY DATABASES AT NIST.
38th Annual Meeting of the Division of Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics , Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 6/6.

FISCHER, C. : B-SPLINES IN VARIATIONAL ATOMIC STRUCTURE THEORY.
38th Annual Meeting of the Division of Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics , Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 6/6.

TAN, J. : OPTICAL TRANSITIONS AMONG RYDBERG STATES--AN IDEAL AVENUE FOR MEASURING BOTH THE FINE STRUCTURE AND RYDBERG CONSTANTS.
38th Annual Meeting of the Division of Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics , Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 6/7.

READER, J. : REVISED ANALYSIS AND CONFIGURATION INTERACTION IN MO~{\SC VI}.
38th Annual Meeting of the Division of Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics , Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 6/7.

SEMANCIK, S. : ENABLING MEMS CHEMICAL MICROSENSOR ARRAYS FOR TRACE ANALYTE DETECTION.
Transducers 2007 / Eurosensors XXI, Lyon, France, 6/9.

WONG-NG, W. : AN OVERVIEW OF THE THERMOELECTRIC RESEARCH AT THE CERAMICS DIVISION OF NIST.
School of Materials Science & Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea, 6/11.

BIENFANG, J. : HIGH-SPEED PHOTON-COUNTING TECHNIQUES AND BROADBAND QUANTUM KEY DISTRIBUTION. .
Institute for Quantum Computing, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, 6/11.

NGUYEN, T. (Co-Authors: A.Granier K.Steffens ) : NCO COVALENT FUNCTIONALIZATION OF CARBON NANOTUBES: SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERIZATION, AND NANOCOMPOSITE PERFORMANCES .
Xiamen University, Xiamen, China , 6/11.

SCHULTZ, Z. : ADVANCED VIBRATIONAL SPECTROSCOPIC CHARACTERIZATION OF BIOMEMBRANES: A MULTI-TECHNIQUE APPROACH..
International Conference on Advanced Vibrational Spectroscopy, Corfu Holiday Palace, Corfu, Greece, 6/12.

WONG-NG, W. : AN OVERVIEW OF THE THERMOELECTRIC AND COATED CONDUCTOR RESEARCH AT THE CERAMICS DIVISION OF NIST.
Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Seoul, Korea, 6/12.

SIMMON, E. : ROHS HARMONIZATION PROGRESS TOWARD A SINGLE GLOBAL STANDARD?.
Advanced Forum on Achieving and Maintaining Global RoHS Compliance, San Francisco, CA, USA, 6/12.

MAY, W. : NEXT GENERATION CHEMICAL MEASUREMENT AND STANDARDS NEEDS.
APMP TCQM-DEC International Workshop & Symposium on Metrology in Chemistry, Xian, China, 6/13.

NGUYEN, T. (Co-Authors: X.Gu L.Chen ) : NANOSCALE CHEMICAL IMAGING WITH TAPPING MODE AFM, FUNCTIONALIZED PROBES, AND HUMIDITY .
Joint Laboratory of Polymer Science and Materials, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing, China, 6/13.

PLUSQUELLIC, D. : THZ SPECTROSCOPY OF PEPTIDES AND OTHER BIOMOLECULES.
International Confernce on Laser Applications in Life Sciences, Moscow, Russia, 6/13.

HEILWEIL, D. : MOLECULAR SPECTOSCOPY USING THZ RADIATION.
Royal Netherland Academy of Arts and Science, Amsterdam, Netherland, 6/15.

SEMANCIK, S. : FORMS AND CHARACTERISTICS OF SENSING OXIDES: A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE.
GOSPEL (General Olfaction and Sensing Projects on a European Level) Conference, Tuebingen, Germany, 6/15.



ANNOUNCEMENTS


RESEARCH INVOLVING HUMAN SUBJECTS
Individuals at NIST who wish to do, or wish to sponsor any research involving human subjects, including human cells or tissue, are required by Federal regulations to obtain approval before embarking on the research. This includes: Research conducted here at NIST by NIST employees or guest workers Collaborative research with others outside of NIST, including CRADAs and other agreements Research funded by NIST through grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements The current procedures for approving projects involving human subjects can be found in the NIST Administrative Manual Subchapter 14.01, Protection of Human Subjects (www-i.nist.gov/admin/mo/adman/1401.htm). These procedures ensure that the proposed research is in compliance with the applicable DOC Regulations, 15 CFR 27 (www.doc.gov/oebam/gforms.htm, click on 15CFR27 to download). NIST's Institutional Review Board (IRB) reviews and approves those research proposals that require review except in cases where an outside IRB has jurisdiction. The NIST IRB is described in Administrative Manual Subchapter 3.01, Appendix A (www-i.nist.gov/admin/mo/adman/301irb.htm). These regulations are broader than many people realize, and involve more than, for example, just invasive medical procedures. They can also cover volunteers participating in questionnaires and surveys and people testing computer software. All research involving human subjects and being conducted at an institution outside of NIST that has not been determined to be exempt from the Federal policy by the appropriate NIST OU Director needs to have an approval from that institution’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) or from an IRB that has a current Federal-wide Assurance (FWA) or a Multiple Project Assurance (MPA) from the Office for Human Research Protections, DHHS. In addition, the institution conducting the research involving human subjects must have a current FWA. The outside IRB’s approval will be subject to concurrence by NIST. The NIST IRB Chair reviews the documentation from the outside researchers and IRB and recommends approval or disapproval to the NIST Deputy Director, with the concurrence of the NIST Counsel. Research being conducted at NIST by NIST employees that has not been determined to be exempt by the appropriate NIST OU Director must be reviewed by the NIST IRB (formerly called The NIST Human Research Ethics Committee). The use of human subjects in the project may not begin until the Counsel for NIST has concurred with the IRB's recommendation to approve the project and the Deputy Director of NIST has approved it. Signatures required before the proposal is sent to the NIST IRB include that of the Group Leader and Division Chief (who approve the scientific merit of the research), and the Laboratory Director (who determines whether it is exempt). An OU Director's exemption determination must receive concurrence from the Counsel for NIST and then be forwarded to the NIST IRB Acting Chair, Dr. Lisa R. Karam for noting and filing. For more information, contact the NIST IRB Secretary, Brenda L. Thomasson, (301) 975-3190 or (301) 975-3084, email: blthomas@nist.gov or visit our website at: http://www-i.nist.gov/director/IRB/ (For best viewing of all pages associated with this website, your monitor should have a display setting of 800 by 600 and in Microsoft Internet Explorer). All correspondence should be mailed to Mail Stop 2200.
NIST Contact: Brenda L. Thomasson, 301-975-3190, blthomas@nist.gov


PRECISE CALIBRATION OF ASTRONOMICAL INSTRUMENTATION: AN ESSENTIAL STEP FOR PRECISION COSMOLOGY
I will describe the current state of calibration of astronomical instruments, and the possibilities for achieving a factor of ten improvement for upcoming large scale ground-based surveys such as PanSTARRS and the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST). There are two main aspects to increased precision: 1) using laboratory detectors from NIST as the fundamental metrology reference for relative flux calibration vs. wavelength, and 2) improving our measurements of the optical transmission function of the atmosphere. Our ability to characterize the nature of the Dark Energy rests on our making progress on both of these issues.
NIST Contact: Gerald Fraser, 301-975-3797, gerald.fraser@nist.gov


VISITOR REGISTRATION FOR NIST EVENTS
Because of heightened security at the NIST Gaithersburg site, members of the public who wish to attend meetings, seminars, lectures, etc. must first register in advance. For more information please call or e-mail the "NIST Contact" for the particular event you would like to attend.
NIST Contact: . ., ., .


2007 WORLD STANDARDS DAY PAPER COMPETITION
The U.S. standards community will celebrate World Standards Day on Thursday, October 18, 2007, at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, DC. This year’s theme, “Standards and the Global Village” recognizes the global consensus-building capacity of standards developing organizations. Along with this event, the 2007 World Standards Day sponsors, including NIST, will hold the annual paper competition. Papers are invited that show, using specific examples, ways that standards developing organizations have encouraged and created global consensus for the economic and social benefit of the global village. Paper competition winners will be announced and given their awards at the U.S. celebration of World Standards Day. Cash prizes are awarded by the Standards Engineering Society (SES) and the World Standards Day Planning Committee. The first place winner will receive a plaque and $2,500. Second and third place winners will receive $1,000 and $500, respectively, along with a certificate. In addition, the winning papers will be published in SES’s journal, Standards Engineering. ELIGIBILITY: The competition is open to all U.S. individuals in the private sector or at government facilities. Papers may be co-authored. RULES: Entries must be original and not previously published. NIST papers must be processed through WERB or BERB. All paper contest submissions must be received with an official entry form by midnight August 31, 2007, by the SES Executive Director, 13340 SW 96th Avenue, Miami, Florida, 33176. Complete details and entry forms are available on the SES website www.ses-standards.org (follow the link for “2007 WSD Paper Competition.”) For additional information about the U.S. Celebration of World Standards Day, or to register for the event, please visit www.wsd-us.org.
NIST Contact: Mary Donaldson, 301-975-6197, mary.donaldson@nist.gov




NIST WEB SITE ANNOUNCEMENTS


No Web Site announcements this week.

For more information, contact Ms. Sharon Hallman, Editor, Stop 2500, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg MD 20899-2500; Telephone: 301-975-TCAL (3570); Fax: 301-926-4431; or Email: tcal@nist.gov.

All lectures and meetings are open unless otherwise stated.

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